imp vs is, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“imp” is a noun and “is” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#44,702
“imp” frequency rank: #478
“is” frequency rank: 45180
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	imp	is
Definition	ein nicht mächtiges Fabelwesen von gedrungener Gestalt; meist grünlich/bräunliche Hautfarbe	[1] umgangssprachlich, dialektal, norddeutsch: 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens des Verbs sein

Where the eye mixes imp and is

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch

imp

2 ch

Visual trap between imp and is

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: imp is [ɪmp] while is is [ɪs]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45180, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

imp is recorded at frequency rank #44,702, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɪmp]. is is at rank #478, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɪs].

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 45180, this pair ranks #1,361,773 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of imp vs is

Shared letters: i. Private to "imp": mp. Private to "is": s.

"imp" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "is" · 2 letters · shape VC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "imp" for "is" ever safe?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "imp" is a noun and "is" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Frequency check: "imp" vs "is" - which ranks higher?

"is" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #478 in our German list, against #44,702 for "imp". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "imp" and "is" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

Full dictionary entry for "imp" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
Full dictionary entry for "is" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
This pair ranks #1,361,773 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
"imp" and "is" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "imp vs IMs". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,361,773 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.