# shiv vs shut

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### shiv
*noun · IPA /ʃɪv/ · frequency rank #25,924*
A knife, especially a makeshift one fashioned from something not normally used as a weapon (like a plastic spoon or a toothbrush).

### shut
*verb · IPA /ʃʌt/ · frequency rank #1,738*
To close, in various senses.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/shiv-vs-shut