sesvsSesamWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ses is a abbrev, Sesam is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ses” is an abbrev and “Sesam” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#26,610
“ses” frequency rank
#46,990
“Sesam” frequency rank
73600
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ses Sesam
Definition Kontraktion von jsi + se Pflanze der Art Sesamum indicum, aus der Familie der Sesamgewächse

Where the spellings diverge

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

3 ch
ses
5 ch
Sesam

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

ses and Sesam form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “ses” sits inside “Sesam” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73600, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ses is recorded at frequency rank #26,610, classified as anabbrev, pronounced [sɛs]. Sesam is at rank #46,990, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈzeːzam].

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 73600, this pair ranks #355,922 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Frequency comparison

ses#26,610
Sesam#46,990

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ses" and "Sesam" be used interchangeably?
No, "ses" and "Sesam" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering ses vs Sesam

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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