# meek vs mess

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### meek
*adjective · IPA /miːk/ · frequency rank #19,136*
Humble, non-boastful, modest, meager, or self-effacing.

### mess
*noun · IPA /mɛs/ · frequency rank #2,631*
a thing or group of things in a disagreeable, disorganised, or dirty state; hence a bad situation

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