MesservsMessersTell them apart

Which to use

“Messer” and “Messers” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#2,668
“Messer” frequency rank
#38,899
“Messers” frequency rank
41567
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Messer Messers
Definition Schneidewerkzeug mit Griff und Klinge Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Messer

Where the eye mixes Messer and Messers

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Messer runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against Messers's 7 (CVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Messer
7 ch
Messers

Look-alike desk: Messer vs Messers

A purely visual mix-up. Messer ([ˈmɛsɐ]) and Messers ([ˈmɛsɐs]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Messer” sits inside “Messers”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41567, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Messer is recorded at frequency rank #2,668, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmɛsɐ]. Messers is at rank #38,899, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmɛsɐs].

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 41567, this pair ranks #1,475,622 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Messer vs Messers

Shared letters: emrs. Private to "Messer": -. Private to "Messers": -.

"Messer" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "Messers" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Messer ← emsser · meser · mesesr · messerr · messre · meßer · mmesser · mseser
  • Messers ← emssers · mesers · mesesrs · messerrs · messerss · messesr · messres · meßers

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Messer" and "Messers" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmɛsɐ] versus [ˈmɛsɐs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Messer" vs "Messers" - which ranks higher?
"Messer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,668 in our German list, against #38,899 for "Messers". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "Messer" and "Messers" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Messer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Messers" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,475,622 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Messer" and "Messers" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "members vs Messers". 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 #1,475,622 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list