KeksvsKernsWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#13,408
“Keks” frequency rank
#39,463
“Kerns” frequency rank
52871
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Keks Kerns
Definition süße, kleine, flache (trockene) Backware Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Kern

Where the eye mixes Keks and Kerns

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Keks runs 4 letters (CVCC) against Kerns's 5 (CVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

4 ch
Keks
5 ch
Kerns

Visual trap between Keks and Kerns

A purely visual mix-up. Keks ([keːks]) and Kerns ([kɛʁns]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52871, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Keks is recorded at frequency rank #13,408, classified as anoun, pronounced [keːks]. Kerns is at rank #39,463, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kɛʁns].

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 52871, this pair ranks #1,080,040 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Keks vs Kerns

Shared letters: eks. Private to "Keks": -. Private to "Kerns": nr.

"Keks" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Kerns" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Keks ← ekks · kekks · kekss · kesk · kkeks · kkes
  • Kerns ← ekrns · kenrs · kernns · kernss · kerrns · kersn · kkerns · krens

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Keks" for "Kerns" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([keːks] versus [kɛʁns]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Keks" or "Kerns" show up more?
"Keks" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,408 in our German list, against #39,463 for "Kerns". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Keks" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Kerns" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,080,040 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Keks" and "Kerns" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kerns vs Kölns". 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 #1,080,040 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