Which to use
“Mädchen” and “Masche” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #534
- “Mädchen” frequency rank
- #16,778
- “Masche” frequency rank
- 17312
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Mädchen | Masche |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | weibliches Kind | eine aus Garn, Faden, Draht oder Ähnlichem gefertigte Schlinge, die beim Stricken, Häkeln oder durch Verknüpfen entsteht |
Where the eye mixes Mädchen and Masche
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Mädchen with Masche
A purely visual mix-up. Mädchen ([ˈmɛːtçən]) and Masche ([ˈmaʃə]) 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 17312, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Mädchen is recorded at frequency rank #534, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmɛːtçən]. Masche is at rank #16,778, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmaʃə].
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 17312, this pair ranks #1,928,492 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Mädchen vs Masche
Shared letters: cehm. Private to "Mädchen": dnä. Private to "Masche": as.
"Mädchen" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "Masche" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- Masche ← amsche · macshe · mascche · masceh · maschhe · mashce · massche · mmasche
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Mädchen" and "Masche" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Mädchen" vs "Masche" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Mädchen" and "Masche" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Mädchen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Masche" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,928,492 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Mädchen" and "Masche" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Masche vs muscle". 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 #1,928,492 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.