Which to use
“mages” and “magus” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #45,499
- “mages” frequency rank
- #46,600
- “magus” frequency rank
- 92099
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mages | magus |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of mage | A magician; (derogatory) a conjurer or sorcerer, especially one who is a charlatan or trickster. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mages and magus apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. mages (/ˈmeɪ.d͡ʒɪz/) and magus (/ˈmeɪɡəs/) 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 a single letter - e in “mages” becomes u in “magus”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 92099, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mages is recorded at frequency rank #45,499, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmeɪ.d͡ʒɪz/. magus is at rank #46,600, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈmeɪɡəs/.
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 92099, this pair ranks #2,842 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of mages vs magus
Shared letters: agms. Private to "mages": e. Private to "magus": u.
"mages" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "magus" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mages" and "magus" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "mages" or "magus"?
Remembering mages vs magus
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mages” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable