setsvsSimsTell them apart

Quick tell: sets is a verb, Sims is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“sets” is a verb and “Sims” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#20,741
“sets” frequency rank
#21,769
“Sims” frequency rank
42510
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sets Sims
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs set waagrechter, langgestreckter, oftmals kunstvoll gestalteter Wandvorsprung an einem Haus

Letter map: sets vs Sims

Shared letters muted; letters that set sets and Sims apart highlighted. Shared run: 2.

4 ch
sets
4 ch
Sims

Role in the sentence - sets and Sims

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: sets is averb and Simsanoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42510, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sets is recorded at frequency rank #20,741, classified as averb, pronounced […]. Sims is at rank #21,769, tagged as anoun, pronounced [zɪms].

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 42510, this pair ranks #1,447,071 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of sets vs Sims

Shared letters: s. Private to "sets": et. Private to "Sims": im.

"sets" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Sims" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • setsests · sest · setss · ssets · stes
  • Simsisms · simms · simss · sism · smis · ssims

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "sets" for "Sims" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "sets" is a verb and "Sims" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "sets" vs "Sims" - which ranks higher?
"sets" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,741 in our German list, against #21,769 for "Sims". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pair "sets" vs "Sims" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.

  • Full dictionary entry for "sets" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Sims" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,447,071 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sets" and "Sims" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "puzzles vs sets". 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 #1,447,071 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