SignalvssignalsConfusable pair

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

Which to use

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

#3,996
“Signal” frequency rank
#42,817
“signals” frequency rank
46813
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Signal signals
Definition etwas Wahrnehmbares, das eine bestimmte Bedeutung hat 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs signal

Letter map: Signal vs signals

Shared letters muted; letters that set Signal and signals apart highlighted. Shared run: 6. Signal runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against signals's 7 (CVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Signal
7 ch
signals

Role in the sentence - Signal and signals

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Signal is anoun and signalsaverb. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Signal” sits inside “signals”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46813, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Signal is recorded at frequency rank #3,996, classified as anoun, pronounced [zɪˈɡnaːl]. signals is at rank #42,817, tagged as averb, pronounced […].

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 46813, this pair ranks #1,306,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Signal vs signals

Shared letters: agilns. Private to "Signal": -. Private to "signals": -.

"Signal" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "signals" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Signal ← isgnal · sginal · siganl · siggnal · signall · signla · signnal · singal
  • signals ← isgnals · sginals · siganls · siggnals · signalls · signalss · signasl · signlas

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Signal" and "signals" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Signal" is a noun and "signals" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "Signal" vs "signals" - which ranks higher?
"Signal" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,996 in our German list, against #42,817 for "signals". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

You've compared "Signal" and "signals". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Signal" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "signals" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,306,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Signal" and "signals" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "puzzles vs signals". 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 #1,306,109 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