Which to use
“stank” and “stun” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #39,107
- “stank” frequency rank
- #17,969
- “stun” frequency rank
- 57076
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | stank | stun |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past of stink | To incapacitate; especially by inducing disorientation or unconsciousness. |
Where the eye mixes stank and stun
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. stank runs 5 letters (CCVCC) against stun's 4 (CCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses stank with stun
A purely visual mix-up. stank (/stæŋk/) and stun (/stʌn/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57076, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
stank is recorded at frequency rank #39,107, classified as averb, pronounced /stæŋk/. stun is at rank #17,969, tagged as averb, pronounced /stʌn/.
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 57076, this pair ranks #121,772 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of stank vs stun
Shared letters: nst. Private to "stank": ak. Private to "stun": u.
"stank" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "stun" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "stank" and "stun" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "stank" or "stun"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "stank" and "stun" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "stank" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "stun" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #121,772 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "stank" and "stun" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stank vs staph". 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 #121,772 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.