PerformancevsPerformancesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“Performance” and “Performances” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#5,293
“Performance” frequency rank
#41,383
“Performances” frequency rank
46676
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Performance Performances
Definition künstlerische Aktion, Darbietung oder Aufführung Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Performance

Where the eye mixes Performance and Performances

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence.

11 ch
Performance
12 ch
Performances

Look-alike desk: Performance vs Performances

A purely visual mix-up. Performance ([pœːɐ̯ˈfɔːɐ̯məns]) and Performances ([pœːɐ̯ˈfɔːɐ̯mənsɪs]) 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) - “Performance” sits inside “Performances”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46676, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Performance is recorded at frequency rank #5,293, classified as anoun, pronounced [pœːɐ̯ˈfɔːɐ̯məns]. Performances is at rank #41,383, tagged as anoun, pronounced [pœːɐ̯ˈfɔːɐ̯mənsɪs].

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 46676, this pair ranks #1,310,884 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Performance vs Performances

Shared letters: acefmnopr. Private to "Performance": -. Private to "Performances": s.

"Performance" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCCV  ·  "Performances" · 12 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Performanceeprformance · pefrormance · perfformance · perfomrance · perforamnce · performacne · performancce · performanec
  • Performanceseprformances · pefrormances · perfformances · perfomrances · perforamnces · performacnes · performancces · performancess

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Performance" for "Performances" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([pœːɐ̯ˈfɔːɐ̯məns] versus [pœːɐ̯ˈfɔːɐ̯mənsɪs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Performance" or "Performances"?
"Performance" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,293 in our German list, against #41,383 for "Performances". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "Performance" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Performances" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,310,884 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • 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 #1,310,884 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