Which to use
“ghost” and “goss” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,376
- “ghost” frequency rank
- #34,706
- “goss” frequency rank
- 50082
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ghost | goss |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs ghosten | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs gießen |
Where the eye mixes ghost and goss
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: ghost vs goss
A purely visual mix-up. ghost ([ɡɔʊ̯st]) and goss ([ɡɔs]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50082, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ghost is recorded at frequency rank #15,376, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡɔʊ̯st]. goss is at rank #34,706, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡɔs].
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 50082, this pair ranks #1,187,330 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ghost vs goss
Shared letters: gos. Private to "ghost": ht. Private to "goss": -.
"ghost" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "goss" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ghost" for "goss" ever safe?
Frequency check: "ghost" vs "goss" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "ghost" and "goss" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ghost" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "goss" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,187,330 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ghost" and "goss" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Goch vs goss". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,187,330 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.