KörpervsKorpusWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#862
“Körper” frequency rank
#29,199
“Korpus” frequency rank
30061
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Körper Korpus
Definition Organismus eines Lebewesens in seiner Gesamtheit Sammlung sprachlicher Gegenstände (Wörter, Sätze, Texte) als Gegenstand sprachwissenschaftlicher Analyse

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
Körper
6 ch
Korpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Körper ([ˈkœʁpɐ]) and Korpus ([ˈkɔʁpʊs]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30061, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Körper is recorded at frequency rank #862, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkœʁpɐ]. Korpus is at rank #29,199, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɔʁpʊs].

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 30061, this pair ranks #1,755,158 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Körper vs Korpus

Shared letters: kpr. Private to "Körper": . Private to "Korpus": osu.

"Körper" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "Korpus" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Korpuskkorpus · koprus · korppus · korpsu · korpuss · korrpus · korups · kropus

Frequency comparison

Körper#862
Korpus#29,199

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Körper" and "Korpus" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkœʁpɐ] versus [ˈkɔʁpʊs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Körper" or "Korpus"?
"Körper" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #862 in our German list, against #29,199 for "Korpus". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Körper vs Korpus

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 “Körper” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list