samplesvssimpleTell them apart

Quick tell: samples is a noun, simple is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“samples” is a noun and “simple” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#42,107
“samples” frequency rank
#11,524
“simple” frequency rank
53631
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature samples simple
Definition Plural des Substantivs sample Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs simpel

Letter map: samples vs simple

Shared letters muted; letters that set samples and simple apart highlighted. Shared run: 5.

7 ch
samples
6 ch
simple

Grammar separator: samples vs simple

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: samples is anoun and simpleanadjective. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53631, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

samples is recorded at frequency rank #42,107, classified as anoun, pronounced […]. simple is at rank #11,524, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɪmplə].

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 53631, this pair ranks #1,050,498 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of samples vs simple

Shared letters: elmps. Private to "samples": a. Private to "simple": i.

"samples" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "simple" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • samplesasmples · samlpes · sammples · sampels · sampless · samplles · samplse · sampples
  • simpleismple · simlpe · simmple · simplle · simpple · sipmle · smiple · ssimple

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "samples" for "simple" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "samples" is a noun and "simple" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "samples" vs "simple" - which ranks higher?
"simple" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,524 in our German list, against #42,107 for "samples". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "samples" and "simple".

  • Full dictionary entry for "samples" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "simple" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,050,498 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "samples" and "simple" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "puzzles vs samples". 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 #1,050,498 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