Which to use
“shrunk” and “strung” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,099
- “shrunk” frequency rank
- #19,478
- “strung” frequency rank
- 42577
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | shrunk | strung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of shrink | simple past and past participle of string |
Where the eye mixes shrunk and strung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between shrunk and strung
A purely visual mix-up. shrunk (/ʃɹʌŋk/) and strung (/stɹʌŋ/) 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 42577, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
shrunk is recorded at frequency rank #23,099, classified as averb, pronounced /ʃɹʌŋk/. strung is at rank #19,478, tagged as averb, pronounced /stɹʌŋ/.
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 42577, this pair ranks #247,919 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of shrunk vs strung
Shared letters: nrsu. Private to "shrunk": hk. Private to "strung": gt.
"shrunk" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC · "strung" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "shrunk" for "strung" ever safe?
Frequency check: "shrunk" vs "strung" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "shrunk" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "strung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #247,919 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "shrunk" and "strung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Shauna vs shrunk". 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 #247,919 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.