mittagsvsmittelsWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: mittags is a adverb, mittels is a preposition, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mittags” is an adverb and “mittels” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#8,756
“mittags” frequency rank
#2,255
“mittels” frequency rank
11011
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mittags mittels
Definition am Mittag, um die Mittagszeit mit dem … [im Genitiv folgenden Gegenstand] als Mittel

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mittags and mittels apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
mittags
7 ch
mittels

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mittags is [ˈmɪtaːks] while mittels is [ˈmɪtl̩s]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adverb vs preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11011, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mittags is recorded at frequency rank #8,756, classified as anadv, pronounced [ˈmɪtaːks]. mittels is at rank #2,255, tagged as aprep, pronounced [ˈmɪtl̩s].

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 11011, this pair ranks #1,972,171 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mittags vs mittels

Shared letters: imst. Private to "mittags": ag. Private to "mittels": el.

"mittags" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC  ·  "mittels" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mittagsimttags · mitags · mitatgs · mittaggs · mittagss · mittasg · mittgas · mmittags
  • mittelsimttels · mitels · mitetls · mittells · mittelss · mittesl · mittles · mmittels

Frequency comparison

mittags#8,756
mittels#2,255

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mittags" and "mittels" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mittags" is an adverb and "mittels" a preposition, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mittags" or "mittels"?
"mittels" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,255 in our German list, against #8,756 for "mittags". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mittags vs mittels

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adverb, it's “mittags”; for a preposition, it's “mittels”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mittags” 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