Which to use
“Macken” and “Mäzen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,672
- “Macken” frequency rank
- #42,696
- “Mäzen” frequency rank
- 74368
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Macken | Mäzen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Macke | vermögende Privatperson, die Kunst, Künstler oder künstlerische Tätigkeiten mit Geld unterstützt, ohne einen direkten Gegenwert zu erwarten; vergleichbar mit einem Sponsor |
Where the eye mixes Macken and Mäzen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Macken runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against Mäzen's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Macken with Mäzen
A purely visual mix-up. Macken ([ˈmakn̩]) and Mäzen ([mɛˈt͡seːn]) 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 74368, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Macken is recorded at frequency rank #31,672, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmakn̩]. Mäzen is at rank #42,696, tagged as anoun, pronounced [mɛˈt͡seːn].
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 74368, this pair ranks #335,320 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of Macken vs Mäzen
Shared letters: emn. Private to "Macken": ack. Private to "Mäzen": zä.
"Macken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Mäzen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Macken ← amcken · maccken · macekn · mackenn · mackken · mackne · makcen · mcaken
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Macken" for "Mäzen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Macken" or "Mäzen"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Macken" and "Mäzen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Macken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Mäzen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #335,320 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Macken" and "Mäzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mailen vs Mäzen". 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 #335,320 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.