matervsMutesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: mater is a verb, Mutes is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mater” is a verb and “Mutes” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#27,842
“mater” frequency rank
#46,166
“Mutes” frequency rank
74008
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mater Mutes
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs matern Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Mut

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mater and Mutes apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
mater
5 ch
Mutes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mater is [ˈmaːtɐ] while Mutes is [ˈmuːtəs]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74008, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mater is recorded at frequency rank #27,842, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmaːtɐ]. Mutes is at rank #46,166, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmuːtəs].

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 74008, this pair ranks #344,890 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of mater vs Mutes

Shared letters: emt. Private to "mater": ar. Private to "Mutes": su.

"mater" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Mutes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • materamter · maetr · materr · matre · mmater · mtaer
  • Mutesmmutes · mtues · muets · mutess · mutse · muttes · umtes

Frequency comparison

mater#27,842
Mutes#46,166

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mater" and "Mutes" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mater" is a verb and "Mutes" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mater" or "Mutes"?
"mater" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,842 in our German list, against #46,166 for "Mutes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mater vs Mutes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “mater”; for a noun, it's “Mutes”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mater” 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