Which to use
“goss” and “guess” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,706
- “goss” frequency rank
- #29,615
- “guess” frequency rank
- 64321
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | goss | guess |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs gießen | mutmaßen, vermuten, erraten |
Where the eye mixes goss and guess
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. goss runs 4 letters (CVCC) against guess's 5 (CVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: goss vs guess
A purely visual mix-up. goss ([ɡɔs]) and guess ([ɡɛs]) 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 64321, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
goss is recorded at frequency rank #34,706, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡɔs]. guess is at rank #29,615, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡɛs].
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 64321, this pair ranks #645,669 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of goss vs guess
Shared letters: gs. Private to "goss": o. Private to "guess": eu.
"goss" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "guess" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "goss" and "guess" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "goss" vs "guess" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "goss" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "guess" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #645,669 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "goss" and "guess" 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 #645,669 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.