# male vs mere

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### male
*adjective · IPA /meɪl/ · frequency rank #1,371*
Belonging to the sex which typically produces sperm, or to the gender which is typically associated with it.

### mere
*adjective · IPA /mɪə̯/ · frequency rank #5,812*
Just, only; no more than, pure and simple, neither more nor better than might be expected.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/male-vs-mere