Which to use
“Date” and “Dates” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,717
- “Date” frequency rank
- #13,798
- “Dates” frequency rank
- 17515
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Date | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Verabredung, meistens von zwei Verliebten | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Date |
Where the eye mixes Date and Dates
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Date and Dates
A purely visual mix-up. Date ([dɛɪ̯t]) and Dates ([deɪt͡s]) 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) - “Date” sits inside “Dates”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17515, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Date is recorded at frequency rank #3,717, classified as anoun, pronounced [dɛɪ̯t]. Dates is at rank #13,798, tagged as anoun, pronounced [deɪt͡s].
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 17515, this pair ranks #1,926,706 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Date vs Dates
Shared letters: adet. Private to "Date": -. Private to "Dates": s.
"Date" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "Dates" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Date" and "Dates" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Date" or "Dates" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Date" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Dates" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,926,706 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Date" and "Dates" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Dates vs dudes". 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 #1,926,706 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.