Which to use
“iss” is a verb and “isses” is an abbrev - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,551
- “iss” frequency rank
- #13,635
- “isses” frequency rank
- 20186
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | iss | isses |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ des Verbs essen | ist es |
Where the eye mixes iss and isses
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. iss runs 3 letters (VCC) against isses's 5 (VCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses iss with isses
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: iss is [ɪs] while isses is [ˈɪsəs]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “iss” sits inside “isses”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs abbrev), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20186, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
iss is recorded at frequency rank #6,551, classified as averb, pronounced [ɪs]. isses is at rank #13,635, tagged as anabbrev, pronounced [ˈɪsəs].
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 20186, this pair ranks #1,900,376 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of iss vs isses
Shared letters: is. Private to "iss": -. Private to "isses": e.
"iss" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "isses" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- isses ← ises · isess · issess · issse · ißes · sises
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "iss" for "isses" ever safe?
Frequency check: "iss" vs "isses" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "iss" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "isses" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,900,376 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "iss" and "isses" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "IMs vs iss". 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 #1,900,376 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.