messern
[ˈmɛsɐn]
The verdict
“messern” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #25,667 in German word frequency and used as a verb.
- #25,667
- frequency rank, German
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 13
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - mit einem Messer schneiden/bearbeiten
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | messern |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | [ˈmɛsɐn] |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #25,667 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 13 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “messern” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for messern is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈmɛsɐn]. Corpus data places it at rank #25,667 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for messern, with forms such as "emssern", "mesern", and "mesesrn". 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 13 confusable-pair relationships, "müssen", "Metern", "missen", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct German form is messern, spelled M-E-S-S-E-R-N.
Definition
- 1mit einem Messer schneiden/bearbeiten
- 2jemanden mit einem Messer umbringen oder angreifen
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: emssern,mesern,mesesrn,messenr,messernn,messerrn,messren,meßern,mmessern,msesern
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of messern - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "messern"?
What does "messern" mean?
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Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “messern”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is M-E-S-S-E-R-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈmɛsɐn] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “müssen” - see the side-by-side comparison. messern vs müssen
- Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
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.