igevsIMsTell them apart

Which to use

“ige” and “IMs” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#21,298
“ige” frequency rank
#49,797
“IMs” frequency rank
71095
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ige IMs
Definition Verb Nominativ Plural des Substantivs IM

Where the eye mixes ige and IMs

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. ige (VCV) and IMs (VCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

3 ch
ige
3 ch
IMs

Why the eye confuses ige with IMs

A purely visual mix-up. ige ([ˈiɡɛ]) and IMs ([iˈʔɛms]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71095, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ige is recorded at frequency rank #21,298, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈiɡɛ]. IMs is at rank #49,797, tagged as anoun, pronounced [iˈʔɛms].

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 71095, this pair ranks #426,906 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of ige vs IMs

Shared letters: i. Private to "ige": eg. Private to "IMs": ms.

"ige" · 3 letters · shape VCV  ·  "IMs" · 3 letters · shape VCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "ige" and "IMs" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈiɡɛ] versus [iˈʔɛms]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "ige" vs "IMs" - which ranks higher?
"ige" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,298 in our German list, against #49,797 for "IMs". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ige" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "IMs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #426,906 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ige" and "IMs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ile vs IMs". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #426,906 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list