Which to use
“think” is a verb and “this” is a determiner - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #89
- “think” frequency rank
- #15
- “this” frequency rank
- 104
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | think | this |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To ponder, to go over in one's mind. | The (thing) here (used in indicating something or someone nearby). |
Where the eye mixes think and this
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: think vs this
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: think is /ˈθɪŋk/ while this is /ðɪs/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs determiner), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 104, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
think is recorded at frequency rank #89, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈθɪŋk/. this is at rank #15, tagged as adet, pronounced /ðɪs/.
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 104, this pair ranks #529,880 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of think vs this
Shared letters: hit. Private to "think": kn. Private to "this": s.
"think" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "this" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "think" and "this" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "think" or "this"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "think" and "this" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "think" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "this" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #529,880 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "think" and "this" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "think vs tik". 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 #529,880 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.