signvsSinneWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“sign” and “Sinne” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#22,142
“sign” frequency rank
#1,122
“Sinne” frequency rank
23264
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sign Sinne
Definition Zeichen, Geste Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Sinn

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sign and Sinne apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
sign
5 ch
Sinne

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. sign ([saɪn]) and Sinne ([ˈzɪnə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23264, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sign is recorded at frequency rank #22,142, classified as anoun, pronounced [saɪn]. Sinne is at rank #1,122, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈzɪnə].

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 23264, this pair ranks #1,863,536 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of sign vs Sinne

Shared letters: ins. Private to "sign": g. Private to "Sinne": e.

"sign" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Sinne" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • signisgn · sgin · siggn · signn · ssign
  • Sinneisnne · sine · sinen · snine · ssinne

Frequency comparison

sign#22,142
Sinne#1,122

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sign" and "Sinne" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([saɪn] versus [ˈzɪnə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "sign" or "Sinne"?
"Sinne" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,122 in our German list, against #22,142 for "sign". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering sign vs Sinne

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sign” 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