Which to use
“nach” is a preposition and “nass” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #35
- “nach” frequency rank
- #5,515
- “nass” frequency rank
- 5550
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nach | nass |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in Richtung (mit Dativ oder adverbialer Bestimmung des Ortes) | mit anhaftender Flüssigkeit, mit Flüssigkeit durchsetzt, von Flüssigkeit bedeckt |
Where the eye mixes nach and nass
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: nach vs nass
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nach is [naːx] while nass is [nas]. 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 (preposition vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5550, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nach is recorded at frequency rank #35, classified as aprep, pronounced [naːx]. nass is at rank #5,515, tagged as anadj, pronounced [nas].
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 5550, this pair ranks #1,994,434 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of nach vs nass
Shared letters: an. Private to "nach": ch. Private to "nass": s.
"nach" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "nass" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "nach" and "nass" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "nach" or "nass"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "nach" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nass" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,994,434 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nach" and "nass" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nass vs nasses". 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 #1,994,434 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.