Which to use
“teh” is an article and “tenth” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,676
- “teh” frequency rank
- #8,097
- “tenth” frequency rank
- 35773
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | teh | tenth |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Deliberate misspelling of the, for humorous, sarcastic, or facetious effect. | The ordinal numeral form of ten; next in order after that which is ninth. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set teh and tenth apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: teh is /tɛ/ while tenth is /tɛnθ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (article vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35773, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
teh is recorded at frequency rank #27,676, classified as anarticle, pronounced /tɛ/. tenth is at rank #8,097, tagged as anadj, pronounced /tɛnθ/.
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 35773, this pair ranks #309,057 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of teh vs tenth
Shared letters: eht. Private to "teh": -. Private to "tenth": n.
"teh" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "tenth" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- tenth ← etnth · tenht · tennth · tenthh · tentth · tetnh · tneth · ttenth
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "teh" and "tenth" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "teh" or "tenth"?
Remembering teh vs tenth
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an article, it's “teh”; for an adjective, it's “tenth”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “teh” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable