What is the difference between 'think' and 'thing'?

The words think and thing are often confused because they appear similar. Do you know the difference?

Think means to ponder, to go over in one's head when used as a verb.

Thing means that which is considered to exist as a separate entity, object, quality or concept when used as a noun.

A good way to remember the difference is to thinK is to have Knowledge.

Out of the two words, 'think' is the most common.

It's easy to confuse words that are spelled similarly. Think and thing have only one letter different.

Think is a verb that means "to ponder or wonder."

Thing is a noun that means "an inanimate object or some entity that cannot be described."

The correct phrase is 'think outside the box'. These phrases are often confused because they look similar.

Some synonyms of think are: ponder, wonder, suppose, think over, deem.

Some synonyms of thing are: object, entity, item.

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The definitions in this article were adapted from Wiktionary.

Examples of think in a sentence

And he knew exactly what he wanted in a wife, so he didn’t think it would be difficult.

- Mystery Bride by B. J. Daniels

She looked happy, was all he could think.

- The heart of Devin MacKade by Nora Roberts

She tried not to think of Ruby, her second daughter and fourth child, and as always, she failed.

- Nothing gold can stay by Dana Stabenow

I don’t think we’ve met.

- The Replacement Child by Christine Barber

You think it’s funny, this road you’re on?

- Some Girls: My Life in a Harem by Jillian Lauren

Examples of thing in a sentence

Point of view in Dickinson’s hands is an unstable thing, too.

- The collected poems of Emily Dickinson by Emily Dickinson; Rachel Wetzsteon

The last thing I wanted to do on my summer break was blow up another school.

- The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

It was a peculiar thing to come to grips with here on the opposite end of the world.

- Demon Lord of Karanda by David Eddings

She wondered if this kind of thing ever happened to someone else.

- In the night room: a novel by Peter Straub

I told you, the thing isn’t hunting machines or biocontained systems anymore.”

- Grand Junction by Maurice G. Dantec

Examples of think in a sentence