Which to use
“hem” is an intj and “hip” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #35,982
- “hem” frequency rank
- #8,554
- “hip” frequency rank
- 44536
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hem | hip |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dont on se sert pour attirer l’attention, pour appeler. | À la mode, branché. |
Where the eye mixes hem and hip
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between hem and hip
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hem is ^((h aspiré))\ɛm\ while hip is ^((h aspiré))\ip\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (intj vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44536, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hem is recorded at frequency rank #35,982, classified as anintj, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\ɛm\. hip is at rank #8,554, tagged as anadj, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\ip\.
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 44536, this pair ranks #209,751 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hem vs hip
Shared letters: h. Private to "hem": em. Private to "hip": ip.
"hem" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "hip" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "hem" for "hip" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "hem" or "hip" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "hem" and "hip" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "hem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hip" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #209,751 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hem" and "hip" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Hatem vs hem". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #209,751 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.