Which to use
“seines” is an unknown and “spies” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #623
- “seines” frequency rank
- #43,504
- “spies” frequency rank
- 44127
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | seines | spies |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum und Neutrum des Possessivpronomens sein | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs speisen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set seines and spies apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: seines is [ˈzaɪ̯nəs] while spies is [ʃpiːs]. 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 (unknown vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44127, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
seines is recorded at frequency rank #623, classified as anunknown, pronounced [ˈzaɪ̯nəs]. spies is at rank #43,504, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃpiːs].
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 44127, this pair ranks #1,396,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of seines vs spies
Shared letters: eis. Private to "seines": n. Private to "spies": p.
"seines" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "spies" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "seines" and "spies" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "seines" or "spies"?
Remembering seines vs spies
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an unknown, it's “seines”; for a verb, it's “spies”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “seines” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable