thisvstssConfusable pair

Quick tell: this is a determiner, tss is an intj, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“this” is a determiner and “tss” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15
“this” frequency rank
#42,965
“tss” frequency rank
42980
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature this tss
Definition The (thing) here (used in indicating something or someone nearby). A hissing sound.

Where the eye mixes this and tss

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
this
3 ch
tss

Look-alike desk: this vs tss

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: this is /ðɪs/ while tss is [t͡sːː]. 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 (determiner vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42980, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

this is recorded at frequency rank #15, classified as adet, pronounced /ðɪs/. tss is at rank #42,965, tagged as anintj, pronounced [t͡sːː].

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 42980, this pair ranks #244,321 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of this vs tss

Shared letters: st. Private to "this": hi. Private to "tss": -.

"this" · 4 letters · shape CCVC  ·  "tss" · 3 letters · shape CCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • thishtis · thhis · thiss · thsi · tihs · tthis

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "this" and "tss" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "this" is a determiner and "tss" an intj, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "this" vs "tss" - which ranks higher?
"this" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15 in our English list, against #42,965 for "tss". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "this" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "tss" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #244,321 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "this" and "tss" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Taf vs tss". 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 #244,321 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list