GanvsGansWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#35,782
“Gan” frequency rank
#16,997
“Gans” frequency rank
52779
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Gan Gans
Definition unter anderem in Jiangxi und Hubei gesprochene chinesische Sprache eine ganze Reihe von nicht unmittelbar verwandten Gattungen der Gänsevögel (Halslänge zwischen Ente und Schwan, Beine nicht ganz so kurz wie bei den Enten)

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Gan and Gans apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
Gan
4 ch
Gans

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Gan ([ɡan]) and Gans ([ɡans]) 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) - “Gan” sits inside “Gans”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52779, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Gan is recorded at frequency rank #35,782, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɡan]. Gans is at rank #16,997, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɡans].

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 52779, this pair ranks #1,083,586 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Gan vs Gans

Shared letters: agn. Private to "Gan": -. Private to "Gans": s.

"Gan" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "Gans" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Gansagns · ganns · ganss · gasn · ggans · gnas

Frequency comparison

Gan#35,782
Gans#16,997

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Gan" and "Gans" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɡan] versus [ɡans]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Gan" or "Gans"?
"Gans" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,997 in our German list, against #35,782 for "Gan". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Gan vs Gans

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 “Gan” 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