Which to use
“Passes” and “Passiv” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #43,401
- “Passes” frequency rank
- #11,109
- “Passiv” frequency rank
- 54510
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Passes | Passiv |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Pass | eine der beiden Diathesen, ein Genus Verbi, Leideform |
Where the eye mixes Passes and Passiv
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Passes with Passiv
A purely visual mix-up. Passes ([ˈpasəs]) and Passiv ([ˈpasiːf]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54510, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Passes is recorded at frequency rank #43,401, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpasəs]. Passiv is at rank #11,109, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpasiːf].
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 54510, this pair ranks #1,016,063 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Passes vs Passiv
Shared letters: aps. Private to "Passes": e. Private to "Passiv": iv.
"Passes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Passiv" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Passes" and "Passiv" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Passes" or "Passiv" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Passes" and "Passiv" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Passes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Passiv" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,016,063 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Passes" and "Passiv" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Passes vs Präses". 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 #1,016,063 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.