tinkvstungWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: tink is a verb, tung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“tink” is a verb and “tung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#40,928
“tink” frequency rank
#24,619
“tung” frequency rank
65547
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tink tung
Definition To emit a high-pitched sharp or metallic noise. Obsolete spelling of tongue, both as language and as part of the body.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tink and tung apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
tink
4 ch
tung

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: tink is averb and tunganoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65547, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tink is recorded at frequency rank #40,928, classified as averb, pronounced /tɪŋk/. tung is at rank #24,619, tagged as anoun.

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 65547, this pair ranks #72,211 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of tink vs tung

Shared letters: nt. Private to "tink": ik. Private to "tung": gu.

"tink" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "tung" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tinkitnk · tikn · tinkk · tinnk · tnik · ttink
  • tungtnug · ttung · tugn · tungg · tunng · utng

Frequency comparison

tink#40,928
tung#24,619

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tink" and "tung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "tink" is a verb and "tung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "tink" or "tung"?
"tung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,619 in our English list, against #40,928 for "tink". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tink vs tung

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “tink”; for a noun, it's “tung”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tink” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list