Maul

[maʊ̯l]

/[maʊ̯l]/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“Maul” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #4,537) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#4,537
frequency rank, German
3,571
“M” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Körperöffnung bei Tieren, durch die Nahrung aufgenommen wird

Corpus desk

Index DE-maul · Maul · German

Maul · rank #4,537 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,537
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,571
  • PHOTO-FINISH Mary

Nearest frequency peer: Mary (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “Maul”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “Maul” sits against the nearest ranked German headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Maul vs ml
25% similar
Maul vs mu
25% similar
Maul vs Mut
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for Maul
PropertyValue
HeadwordMaul
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[maʊ̯l]
Letters4
Frequency rank#4,537
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Maul” sits in German frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).Maul lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for Maul is neighbouring look-alikes ("ml", "mu", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced [maʊ̯l]. Frequency #4,537 among 3,571 “M” headwords. 2 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for Maul, with forms such as "amul", "maull", and "mmaul". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ml", "mu", "Mut", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is Maul, spelled M-A-U-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Körperöffnung bei Tieren, durch die Nahrung aufgenommen wird
  2. 2
    menschlicher Mund

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how Maul appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. In den Mäulern einiger Tiere finden sich sehr viele Bakterien.
  2. „Der Haken im Unterkiefer riß den Kopf des Haifischs hoch und hielt sein Maul über Wasser.“

Synonyms

SchnauzeMundÄserFresseGoscheGuscheKlappeMundMundwerkRachenSchnabelSchnauzeSchnorreSchnurre

This word in other languages

mouth(English)boca(Español)gueule(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amul
  • maull
  • mmaul
  • mual

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Maul - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

amul2maull1mmaul1mual2
Edit distance from "Maul"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Maul"?
"Maul" is spelled M-A-U-L. The IPA pronunciation is [maʊ̯l].
What does "Maul" mean?
As a noun, "Maul" means: Körperöffnung bei Tieren, durch die Nahrung aufgenommen wird
What words are commonly confused with "Maul"?
"Maul" is commonly confused with "ml", "mu", "Mut". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Maul"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Maul" is [maʊ̯l]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Maul" come from?
"Maul" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "Maul", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Mary#4,536Linz#4,534Obst#4,545Pech#4,547

What to do next

You've looked up "Maul". Here's where to go from here.

  • "Maul" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "ml". View pair
  • 4 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #4,537 among German headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more German words in the "M" letter cohort. M–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list