siesvssignWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#40,209
“sies” frequency rank
#22,142
“sign” frequency rank
62351
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sies sign
Definition archaisch: 2. Person Singular Konjunktiv Präsens Aktiv des Verbs esse Zeichen, Geste

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sies and sign apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
sies
4 ch
sign

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: sies is averb and signanoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62351, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sies is recorded at frequency rank #40,209, classified as averb, pronounced […]. sign is at rank #22,142, tagged as anoun, pronounced [saɪn].

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 62351, this pair ranks #716,099 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of sies vs sign

Shared letters: is. Private to "sies": e. Private to "sign": gn.

"sies" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "sign" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • siesseis · siess · sise · ssies
  • signisgn · sgin · siggn · signn · ssign

Frequency comparison

sies#40,209
sign#22,142

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sies" and "sign" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "sies" is a verb and "sign" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "sies" or "sign"?
"sign" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,142 in our German list, against #40,209 for "sies". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering sies vs sign

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “sies”; for a noun, it's “sign”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sies” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list