MassevsmassigWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Masse is a noun, massig is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Masse” is a noun and “massig” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,815
“Masse” frequency rank
#28,309
“massig” frequency rank
30124
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Masse massig
Definition die Ursache, dass der Materie Trägheit und Schwere (Gravitation) eigen sind; nach der Relativitätstheorie mit Kraft (Energie) gleichwertig (äquivalent) mit Masse ausgestattet; über genügend, ausreichend Masse verfügend

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Masse and massig apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Masse
6 ch
massig

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Masse is [ˈmasə] while massig is [ˈmasɪç]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30124, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Masse is recorded at frequency rank #1,815, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmasə]. massig is at rank #28,309, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈmasɪç].

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 30124, this pair ranks #1,753,956 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Masse vs massig

Shared letters: ams. Private to "Masse": e. Private to "massig": gi.

"Masse" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "massig" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Masseamsse · mase · mases · maße · mmasse · msase
  • massigamssig · masig · masisg · massgi · massigg · maßig · mmassig · msasig

Frequency comparison

Masse#1,815
massig#28,309

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Masse" and "massig" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Masse" is a noun and "massig" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Masse" or "massig"?
"Masse" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,815 in our German list, against #28,309 for "massig". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Masse vs massig

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Masse”; for an adjective, it's “massig”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Masse” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list