samplesvssimplesWhich spelling fits?

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

Which to use

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

#42,107
“samples” frequency rank
#42,818
“simples” frequency rank
84925
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature samples simples
Definition Plural des Substantivs sample Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs simpel

Letter map: samples vs simples

Shared letters muted; letters that set samples and simples apart highlighted. Shared run: 6.

7 ch
samples
7 ch
simples

Role in the sentence - samples and simples

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: samples is anoun and simplesanadjective. On the page they differ by a single letter - a in “samples” becomes i in “simples”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 84925, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

samples is recorded at frequency rank #42,107, classified as anoun, pronounced […]. simples is at rank #42,818, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɪmpləs].

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 84925, this pair ranks #116,079 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of samples vs simples

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

"samples" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "simples" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • samplesasmples · samlpes · sammples · sampels · sampless · samplles · samplse · sampples
  • simplesismples · simlpes · simmples · simpels · simpless · simplles · simplse · simpples

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "samples" for "simples" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "samples" is a noun and "simples" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "samples" vs "simples" - which ranks higher?
"samples" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #42,107 in our German list, against #42,818 for "simples". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

You've compared "samples" and "simples". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "samples" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "simples" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #116,079 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "samples" and "simples" 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 #116,079 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