# whet vs whoa

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### whet
*verb · IPA /ˈwɛt/ · frequency rank #46,265*
To hone or rub on with some substance, as a piece of stone, for the purpose of sharpening – see whetstone.

### whoa
*intj · IPA /wəʊ/ · frequency rank #9,421*
Stop (especially when commanding a horse or imitative thereof); calm down; slow down.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/whet-vs-whoa