Which to use
“sigma” and “soma” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,736
- “sigma” frequency rank
- #39,542
- “soma” frequency rank
- 71278
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sigma | soma |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | σ, ς, Σ, dix-huitième lettre et treizième consonne de l’alphabet grec. | Péricaryon ou corps cellulaire, partie centrale d'un neurone. |
Where the eye mixes sigma and soma
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. sigma runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against soma's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses sigma with soma
A purely visual mix-up. sigma (\siɡ.ma\) and soma (\sɔ.ma\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71278, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sigma is recorded at frequency rank #31,736, classified as anoun, pronounced \siɡ.ma\. soma is at rank #39,542, tagged as anoun, pronounced \sɔ.ma\.
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 71278, this pair ranks #48,154 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of sigma vs soma
Shared letters: ams. Private to "sigma": gi. Private to "soma": o.
"sigma" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "soma" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "sigma" and "soma" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "sigma" or "soma"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "sigma" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "soma" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #48,154 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sigma" and "soma" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "soma vs soya". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #48,154 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.