Which to use
“spy” is a noun and “st” is a symbol - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #37,565
- “spy” frequency rank
- #1,190
- “st” frequency rank
- 38755
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spy | st |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Espion. | Symbole de la stère. |
Letter map: spy vs st
Shared letters muted; letters that set spy and st apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.
Grammar separator: spy vs st
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: spy is anoun and stasymbol. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38755, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spy is recorded at frequency rank #37,565, classified as anoun, pronounced \spaɪ\. st is at rank #1,190, tagged as asymbol.
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 38755, this pair ranks #253,030 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of spy vs st
Shared letters: s. Private to "spy": py. Private to "st": t.
"spy" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "st" · 2 letters · shape CC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "spy" for "st" ever safe?
Which is more common, "spy" or "st"?
Useful next steps
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "spy" and "st".
- Full dictionary entry for "spy" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "st" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #253,030 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spy" and "st" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "spy vs suu". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #253,030 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.