missenvsmisstWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#21,697
“missen” frequency rank
#8,755
“misst” frequency rank
30452
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature missen misst
Definition etwas entbehren 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs messen

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
missen
5 ch
misst

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. missen ([ˈmɪsn̩]) and misst ([mɪst]) 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 30452, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

missen is recorded at frequency rank #21,697, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmɪsn̩]. misst is at rank #8,755, tagged as averb, pronounced [mɪst].

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 30452, this pair ranks #1,747,558 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of missen vs misst

Shared letters: ims. Private to "missen": en. Private to "misst": t.

"missen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "misst" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • missenimssen · misen · misesn · missenn · missne · mißen · mmissen · msisen
  • misstimsst · misstt · mists · mißt · mmisst · msist

Frequency comparison

missen#21,697
misst#8,755

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "missen" and "misst" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmɪsn̩] versus [mɪst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "missen" or "misst"?
"misst" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,755 in our German list, against #21,697 for "missen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering missen vs misst

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “missen” 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