SigmavsStigmaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#29,330
“Sigma” frequency rank
#37,800
“Stigma” frequency rank
67130
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Sigma Stigma
Definition achtzehnter Buchstabe des griechischen Alphabets auffälliges, mitunter negativ bewertetes Merkmal, genauer

Where the eye mixes Sigma and Stigma

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

5 ch
Sigma
6 ch
Stigma

Look-alike desk: Sigma vs Stigma

A purely visual mix-up. Sigma ([ˈzɪɡma]) and Stigma ([ˈʃtɪɡma]) 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 67130, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Sigma is recorded at frequency rank #29,330, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈzɪɡma]. Stigma is at rank #37,800, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtɪɡma].

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 67130, this pair ranks #550,300 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Sigma vs Stigma

Shared letters: agims. Private to "Sigma": -. Private to "Stigma": t.

"Sigma" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "Stigma" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Sigmaisgma · sgima · sigam · siggma · sigmma · simga · ssigma
  • Stigmasitgma · sstigma · stgima · stigam · stiggma · stigmma · stimga · sttigma

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Sigma" and "Stigma" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzɪɡma] versus [ˈʃtɪɡma]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Sigma" vs "Stigma" - which ranks higher?
"Sigma" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,330 in our German list, against #37,800 for "Stigma". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Sigma" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Stigma" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #550,300 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Sigma" and "Stigma" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sega vs Sigma". 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 #550,300 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