AutorvsAutorsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“Autor” and “Autors” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#1,468
“Autor” frequency rank
#8,682
“Autors” frequency rank
10150
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Autor Autors
Definition Person, die einen oder mehrere literarische oder wissenschaftliche Texte verfasst hat Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Autor

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Autor and Autors apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Autor
6 ch
Autors

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Autor ([ˈaʊ̯toːɐ̯]) and Autors ([ˈaʊ̯toːɐ̯s]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Autor” sits inside “Autors”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10150, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Autor is recorded at frequency rank #1,468, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯toːɐ̯]. Autors is at rank #8,682, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯toːɐ̯s].

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 10150, this pair ranks #1,976,551 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Autor vs Autors

Shared letters: aortu. Private to "Autor": -. Private to "Autors": s.

"Autor" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC  ·  "Autors" · 6 letters · shape VVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Autoratuor · auotr · autorr · autro · auttor · uator
  • Autorsatuors · auotrs · autorrs · autorss · autosr · autros · auttors · uators

Frequency comparison

Autor#1,468
Autors#8,682

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Autor" and "Autors" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯toːɐ̯] versus [ˈaʊ̯toːɐ̯s]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Autor" or "Autors"?
"Autor" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,468 in our German list, against #8,682 for "Autors". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Autor vs Autors

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 “Autor” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list