LaivslisWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#47,552
“Lai” frequency rank
#38,263
“lis” frequency rank
85815
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Lai lis
Definition reines Instrumentalstück der mittelalterlichen französischen Musik Stieleiche

Where the eye mixes Lai and lis

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. Lai (CVV) and lis (CVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

3 ch
Lai
3 ch
lis

Look-alike desk: Lai vs lis

A purely visual mix-up. Lai ([lɛː]) and lis ([lis]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 85815, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Lai is recorded at frequency rank #47,552, classified as anoun, pronounced [lɛː]. lis is at rank #38,263, tagged as anoun, pronounced [lis].

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 85815, this pair ranks #102,719 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Lai vs lis

Shared letters: il. Private to "Lai": a. Private to "lis": s.

"Lai" · 3 letters · shape CVV  ·  "lis" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Lai" and "lis" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([lɛː] versus [lis]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Lai" vs "lis" - which ranks higher?
"lis" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #38,263 in our German list, against #47,552 for "Lai". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Lai" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #102,719 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Lai" and "lis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Lai vs lame". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #102,719 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