Which to use
“machine” is a noun and “reference” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,337
- “machine” frequency rank
- #36,581
- “reference” frequency rank
- 48918
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | machine | reference |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein Apparat mit vielen beweglichen Teilen; gestaltet um eine Aufgabe zu erfüllen. | auf etwas verweisen |
Letter map: machine vs reference
Shared letters muted; letters that set machine and reference apart highlighted. Shared run: 2. machine runs 7 letters (CVCCVCV) against reference's 9 (CVCVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Grammar separator: machine vs reference
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: machine is anoun and referenceaverb. On the page they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48918, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
machine is recorded at frequency rank #12,337, classified as anoun, pronounced […]. reference is at rank #36,581, tagged as averb, pronounced […].
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 48918, this pair ranks #1,230,732 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of machine vs reference
Shared letters: cen. Private to "machine": ahim. Private to "reference": fr.
"machine" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "reference" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "machine" and "reference" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "machine" or "reference"?
What to do next
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "machine" and "reference".
- Full dictionary entry for "machine" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "reference" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,230,732 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "machine" and "reference" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "puzzles vs reference". 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 #1,230,732 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.