Which to use
“Pelz” is a noun and “pes” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #18,354
- “Pelz” frequency rank
- #43,402
- “pes” frequency rank
- 61756
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Pelz | pes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | behaartes Tierfell | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs pesen |
Where the eye mixes Pelz and pes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. Pelz runs 4 letters (CVCC) against pes's 3 (CVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Pelz with pes
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Pelz is [pɛlt͡s] while pes is [peːs]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61756, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Pelz is recorded at frequency rank #18,354, classified as anoun, pronounced [pɛlt͡s]. pes is at rank #43,402, tagged as averb, pronounced [peːs].
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 61756, this pair ranks #737,845 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Pelz vs pes
Shared letters: ep. Private to "Pelz": lz. Private to "pes": s.
"Pelz" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "pes" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Pelz ← eplz · pellz · pelzz · pezl · plez · ppelz
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Pelz" for "pes" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Pelz" or "pes" 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 "Pelz" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #737,845 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Pelz" and "pes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pes 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 #737,845 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.