billigvsbilligesTell them apart

Which to use

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

#4,251
“billig” frequency rank
#23,449
“billiges” frequency rank
27700
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature billig billiges
Definition angemessen (recht und billig) Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs billig

Where the eye mixes billig and billiges

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. billig runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against billiges's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
billig
8 ch
billiges

Why the eye confuses billig with billiges

A purely visual mix-up. billig ([ˈbɪlɪç]) and billiges ([ˈbɪlɪɡəs]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “billig” sits inside “billiges”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27700, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

billig is recorded at frequency rank #4,251, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈbɪlɪç]. billiges is at rank #23,449, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈbɪlɪɡəs].

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 27700, this pair ranks #1,797,354 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of billig vs billiges

Shared letters: bgil. Private to "billig": -. Private to "billiges": es.

"billig" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "billiges" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • billig ← bbillig · bilig · bililg · billgi · billigg · blilig · ibllig
  • billiges ← bbilliges · biliges · bililges · billgies · billiegs · billigess · billigges · billigse

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "billig" and "billiges" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈbɪlɪç] versus [ˈbɪlɪɡəs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "billig" or "billiges" show up more?
"billig" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,251 in our German list, against #23,449 for "billiges". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "billig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "billiges" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,797,354 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "billig" and "billiges" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "billiges vs billigte". 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 #1,797,354 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list