# sinking vs smirking

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### sinking
*noun · IPA /ˈsɪŋkɪŋ/ · frequency rank #9,251*
gerund of sink: the process by which something sinks, or is sunk.

### smirking
*noun · frequency rank #43,923*
The act of one who smirks.

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