machvsMhConfusable pair

Quick tell: mach is a verb, Mh is a character, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mach” is a verb and “Mh” is a character - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#687
“mach” frequency rank
#14,634
“Mh” frequency rank
15321
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mach Mh
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ des Verbs machen achtzehnter Buchstabe des Shona-Alphabets (Majuskel)

Where the eye mixes mach and Mh

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
mach
2 ch
Mh

Why the eye confuses mach with Mh

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mach is [max] while Mh is [m̤]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs character), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15321, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mach is recorded at frequency rank #687, classified as averb, pronounced [max]. Mh is at rank #14,634, tagged as acharacter, pronounced [m̤].

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 15321, this pair ranks #1,944,774 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mach vs Mh

Shared letters: hm. Private to "mach": ac. Private to "Mh": -.

"mach" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Mh" · 2 letters · shape CC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • machamch · macch · machh · mahc · mcah · mmach

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mach" and "Mh" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mach" is a verb and "Mh" a character, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mach" or "Mh"?
"mach" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #687 in our German list, against #14,634 for "Mh". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "mach" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Mh" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,944,774 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "mach" and "Mh" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Mh vs mme". 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 #1,944,774 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