Which to use
“pars” is a verb and “pay” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #47,639
- “pars” frequency rank
- #10,338
- “pay” frequency rank
- 57977
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pars | pay |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs parsen | Geld, das man für eine Arbeitsleistung (meist regelmäßig) bekommt |
Where the eye mixes pars and pay
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses pars with pay
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pars is [paʁs] while pay is [peɪ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57977, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pars is recorded at frequency rank #47,639, classified as averb, pronounced [paʁs]. pay is at rank #10,338, tagged as anoun, pronounced [peɪ].
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 57977, this pair ranks #880,358 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pars vs pay
Shared letters: ap. Private to "pars": rs. Private to "pay": y.
"pars" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "pay" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- pars ← aprs · parrs · parss · pasr · ppars · pras
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pars" for "pay" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "pars" or "pay" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pars" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pay" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #880,358 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pars" and "pay" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pars vs PMS". 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 #880,358 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.