Which to use
“scanning” and “shunning” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,931
- “scanning” frequency rank
- #46,776
- “shunning” frequency rank
- 57707
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scanning | shunning |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | present participle and gerund of scan | present participle and gerund of shun |
Where the eye mixes scanning and shunning
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. scanning and shunning follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses scanning with shunning
A purely visual mix-up. scanning (/ˈskænɪŋ/) and shunning (/ˈʃʌnɪŋ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57707, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scanning is recorded at frequency rank #10,931, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈskænɪŋ/. shunning is at rank #46,776, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈʃʌnɪŋ/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 57707, this pair ranks #117,578 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of scanning vs shunning
Shared letters: gins. Private to "scanning": ac. Private to "shunning": hu.
"scanning" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC · "shunning" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "scanning" and "shunning" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "scanning" vs "shunning" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "scanning" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "shunning" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #117,578 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scanning" and "shunning" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "shunning vs stunting". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #117,578 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.