Which to use
“Papier” and “Papiers” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,171
- “Papier” frequency rank
- #37,723
- “Papiers” frequency rank
- 39894
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Papier | Papiers |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | dünnes, in Form von Blättern vorliegendes, organisches Material, das in der Regel aus einem geleimten Brei von Pflanzenfasern hergestellt wird und den verschiedensten Zwecken (Beschreiben, Bedrucken, als Verpackungsmaterial, Baustoff und Ähnliches) dient | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Papier |
Where the eye mixes Papier and Papiers
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Papier runs 6 letters (CVCVVC) against Papiers's 7 (CVCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Papier and Papiers
A purely visual mix-up. Papier ([paˈpiːɐ̯]) and Papiers ([paˈpiːɐ̯s]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Papier” sits inside “Papiers”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39894, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Papier is recorded at frequency rank #2,171, classified as anoun, pronounced [paˈpiːɐ̯]. Papiers is at rank #37,723, tagged as anoun, pronounced [paˈpiːɐ̯s].
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 39894, this pair ranks #1,523,881 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Papier vs Papiers
Shared letters: aeipr. Private to "Papier": -. Private to "Papiers": s.
"Papier" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "Papiers" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Papier" and "Papiers" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Papier" or "Papiers" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Papier" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Papiers" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,523,881 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Papier" and "Papiers" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "papieren vs Papiers". 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 #1,523,881 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.