Which to use
“Minus” and “mis” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,089
- “Minus” frequency rank
- #37,676
- “mis” frequency rank
- 43765
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Minus | mis |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Fehlendes bei einer Abrechnung | rotes, leicht formbares Metall, das sich gut als Stromleiter eignet; Kupfer |
Where the eye mixes Minus and mis
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Minus and mis
A purely visual mix-up. Minus ([ˈmiːnʊs]) and mis ([mis]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43765, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Minus is recorded at frequency rank #6,089, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmiːnʊs]. mis is at rank #37,676, tagged as anoun, pronounced [mis].
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 43765, this pair ranks #1,407,681 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Minus vs mis
Shared letters: ims. Private to "Minus": nu. Private to "mis": -.
"Minus" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "mis" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Minus ← imnus · minnus · minsu · minuss · miuns · mminus · mnius
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Minus" and "mis" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Minus" or "mis" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Minus" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,407,681 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Minus" and "mis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Milfs vs mis". 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 #1,407,681 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.