# wail vs wan

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### wail
*verb · IPA /weɪl/ · frequency rank #33,078*
To cry out, as in sorrow or anguish.

### wan
*adjective · IPA /wɒn/ · frequency rank #9,690*
Pale, sickly-looking.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-02.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/wail-vs-wan