Which to use
“what's” and “why's” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #645
- “what's” frequency rank
- #28,792
- “why's” frequency rank
- 29437
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | what's | why's |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | What is. | Contraction of why + is. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set what's and why's apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
what's and why's are indexed as a confusable English pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29437, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
what's is recorded at frequency rank #645, classified as acontraction, pronounced /wɒts/. why's is at rank #28,792, tagged as acontraction.
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 29437, this pair ranks #363,022 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of what's vs why's
Shared letters: hsw. Private to "what's": at. Private to "why's": y.
"what's" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "why's" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "what's" and "why's" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "what's" or "why's"?
Remembering what's vs why's
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “what's” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable