snip

/snɪp/

//snɪp// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"snip" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“snip” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #35,522. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#35,522
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To cut with short sharp actions, as with scissors.

Corpus desk

Index EN-snip · snip · English

snip · rank #35,522 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #35,522
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sneaked

Nearest frequency peer: sneaked (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “snip”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “snip” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

snip vs SP
0% similar
snip vs SNP
0% similar
snip vs sup
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for snip
PropertyValue
Headwordsnip
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/snɪp/
Letters4
Frequency rank#35,522
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “snip”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).sniplands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “sneaked” (#35,521), “sombre” (#35,523), “Sotheby's” (#35,524). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “snip” is #35,522. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around snip (IPA /snɪp/), averb. Corpus frequency is #35,522 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for snip, with forms such as "nsip", "sinp", and "snipp". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "SP", "SNP", "sup", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Dutch snippen (“to snip; shred”) or Low German snippen (“to snip; shred”), of imitative origin. Compare snap. The correct English form is snip, spelled S-N-I-P.

Definition

  1. 1
    To cut with short sharp actions, as with scissors.
  2. 2
    To reduce the price of a product, to create a snip.
  3. 3
    To break off; to snatch away.
  4. 4
    To circumcise.
  5. 5
    To perform a vasectomy.
  6. 6
    To remove the irrelevant parts of quotations in the reply message.
  7. 7
    To speak or say in a snippish manner.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how snip appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. I don't want you to take much hair off; just snip my mullet off.
  2. The captain seldom ordered anything out of the ship's stores […] but I snipt […]some of it for my own share.

Etymology

From Dutch snippen (“to snip; shred”) or Low German snippen (“to snip; shred”), of imitative origin. Compare snap.

This word in other languages

cortar(Español)découper(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • nsip
  • sinp
  • snipp
  • snnip
  • snpi
  • ssnip

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of snip - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

nsip2sinp2snipp1snnip1snpi2ssnip1
Edit distance from "snip"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "snip"?
"snip" is spelled S-N-I-P. The IPA pronunciation is /snɪp/.
What does "snip" mean?
As a verb, "snip" means: To cut with short sharp actions, as with scissors.
What words are commonly confused with "snip"?
"snip" is commonly confused with "SP", "SNP", "sup". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "snip"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "snip" is /snɪp/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "snip"?
From Dutch snippen (“to snip; shred”) or Low German snippen (“to snip; shred”), of imitative origin. Compare snap. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "snip", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

spas#35,526shad#35,509roos#35,496ROFL#35,495

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

Platte6 variantsOMFG6 variantsOCLC6 variantsNath6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list