Which to use
“tun” is a noun and “tuned” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #30,265
- “tun” frequency rank
- #8,735
- “tuned” frequency rank
- 39000
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tun | tuned |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A large cask; an oblong vessel bulging in the middle, like a pipe or puncheon, and girt with hoops; a wine cask. (See a diagram comparing cask sizes.) | simple past and past participle of tune |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tun and tuned 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: tun is /tʌn/ while tuned is /tjuːnd/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “tun” sits inside “tuned”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39000, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tun is recorded at frequency rank #30,265, classified as anoun, pronounced /tʌn/. tuned is at rank #8,735, tagged as averb, pronounced /tjuːnd/.
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 39000, this pair ranks #280,781 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tun vs tuned
Shared letters: ntu. Private to "tun": -. Private to "tuned": de.
"tun" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "tuned" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- tuned ← tnued · ttuned · tuend · tunde · tunedd · tunned · utned
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tun" and "tuned" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "tun" or "tuned"?
Remembering tun vs tuned
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “tun”; for a verb, it's “tuned”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tun” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable