# sparring vs starling

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### sparring
*verb · IPA /ˈspɑːɹɪŋ/ · frequency rank #25,215*
present participle and gerund of spar

### starling
*noun · IPA /ˈstɑːlɪŋ/ · frequency rank #28,031*
A family, Sturnidae, of passerine birds.

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