Which to use
“spa” is a noun and “sup” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,611
- “spa” frequency rank
- #13,818
- “sup” frequency rank
- 21429
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spa | sup |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A health resort near a mineral spring or hot spring. | To sip; to take a small amount of food or drink into the mouth, especially with a spoon. |
Where the eye mixes spa and sup
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses spa with sup
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: spa is /ˈspɑː/ while sup is /sʌp/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21429, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spa is recorded at frequency rank #7,611, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈspɑː/. sup is at rank #13,818, tagged as averb, pronounced /sʌp/.
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 21429, this pair ranks #423,994 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of spa vs sup
Shared letters: ps. Private to "spa": a. Private to "sup": u.
"spa" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "sup" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "spa" for "sup" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "spa" or "sup" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "spa" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sup" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #423,994 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spa" and "sup" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sup vs sura". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #423,994 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.