Which to use
“derb” is an adjective and “dess” is an unknown - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,415
- “derb” frequency rank
- #48,817
- “dess” frequency rank
- 91232
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | derb | dess |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | unverdorben, kräftig | 3. Person Utrum Singular Genitiv des Personalpronomens den |
Where the eye mixes derb and dess
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. derb and dess follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses derb with dess
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: derb is [dɛʁp] while dess is [ˈdɛ̝sː]. 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 (adjective vs unknown), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 91232, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
derb is recorded at frequency rank #42,415, classified as anadj, pronounced [dɛʁp]. dess is at rank #48,817, tagged as anunknown, pronounced [ˈdɛ̝sː].
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 91232, this pair ranks #39,731 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of derb vs dess
Shared letters: de. Private to "derb": br. Private to "dess": s.
"derb" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "dess" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "derb" for "dess" ever safe?
Which is more common, "derb" or "dess"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "derb" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dess" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #39,731 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "derb" and "dess" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dess vs dew". 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 #39,731 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.