Which to use
“mah” is a determiner and “mud” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #34,174
- “mah” frequency rank
- #49,806
- “mud” frequency rank
- 83980
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mah | mud |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Mon, ma. | Boue. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mah and mud apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mah is \mɑː\ while mud is \ˈmʌd\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (determiner vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 83980, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mah is recorded at frequency rank #34,174, classified as adet, pronounced \mɑː\. mud is at rank #49,806, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈmʌd\.
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 83980, this pair ranks #13,821 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of mah vs mud
Shared letters: m. Private to "mah": ah. Private to "mud": du.
"mah" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "mud" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mah" and "mud" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "mah" or "mud"?
Remembering mah vs mud
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a determiner, it's “mah”; for a noun, it's “mud”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mah” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable