Which to use
“Kerns” and “keys” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #39,463
- “Kerns” frequency rank
- #18,945
- “keys” frequency rank
- 58408
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Kerns | keys |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Kern | Plural des Substantivs key |
Where the eye mixes Kerns and keys
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Kerns vs keys
A purely visual mix-up. Kerns ([kɛʁns]) and keys ([kiːz]) 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 58408, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Kerns is recorded at frequency rank #39,463, classified as anoun, pronounced [kɛʁns]. keys is at rank #18,945, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kiːz].
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 58408, this pair ranks #863,920 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Kerns vs keys
Shared letters: eks. Private to "Kerns": nr. Private to "keys": y.
"Kerns" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "keys" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Kerns" and "keys" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "Kerns" or "keys"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Kerns" and "keys" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Kerns" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "keys" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #863,920 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Kerns" and "keys" 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 #863,920 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.