NachweisvsnachweistConfusable pair

Quick tell: Nachweis is a noun, nachweist is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Nachweis” is a noun and “nachweist” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,742
“Nachweis” frequency rank
#49,921
“nachweist” frequency rank
55663
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Nachweis nachweist
Definition Beleg oder Bestätigung für eine Behauptung oder Theorie 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs nachweisen

Where the eye mixes Nachweis and nachweist

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Nachweis runs 8 letters (CVCCCVVC) against nachweist's 9 (CVCCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
Nachweis
9 ch
nachweist

Look-alike desk: Nachweis vs nachweist

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Nachweis is [ˈnaːxˌvaɪ̯s] while nachweist is [ˈnaːxˌvaɪ̯st]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Nachweis” sits inside “nachweist”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55663, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Nachweis is recorded at frequency rank #5,742, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌvaɪ̯s]. nachweist is at rank #49,921, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌvaɪ̯st].

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 55663, this pair ranks #970,790 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Nachweis vs nachweist

Shared letters: acehinsw. Private to "Nachweis": -. Private to "nachweist": t.

"Nachweis" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVVC  ·  "nachweist" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Nachweisanchweis · nacchweis · nachewis · nachhweis · nachweiss · nachwesi · nachwies · nachwweis
  • nachweistanchweist · nacchweist · nachewist · nachhweist · nachweisst · nachweistt · nachweits · nachwesit

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Nachweis" for "nachweist" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Nachweis" is a noun and "nachweist" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "Nachweis" vs "nachweist" - which ranks higher?
"Nachweis" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,742 in our German list, against #49,921 for "nachweist". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Nachweis" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "nachweist" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #970,790 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Nachweis" and "nachweist" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nachweist vs Nachwelt". 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 #970,790 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