simplevsSümpfeWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: simple is a adjective, Sümpfe is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“simple” is an adjective and “Sümpfe” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#11,524
“simple” frequency rank
#47,043
“Sümpfe” frequency rank
58567
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature simple Sümpfe
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs simpel Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Sumpf

Where the eye mixes simple and Sümpfe

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
simple
6 ch
Sümpfe

Visual trap between simple and Sümpfe

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: simple is [ˈzɪmplə] while Sümpfe is [ˈzʏmp͡fə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58567, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

simple is recorded at frequency rank #11,524, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɪmplə]. Sümpfe is at rank #47,043, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈzʏmp͡fə].

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 58567, this pair ranks #857,810 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of simple vs Sümpfe

Shared letters: emps. Private to "simple": il. Private to "Sümpfe": .

"simple" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "Sümpfe" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • simpleismple · simlpe · simmple · simplle · simpple · sipmle · smiple · ssimple

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "simple" for "Sümpfe" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "simple" is an adjective and "Sümpfe" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "simple" or "Sümpfe" show up more?
"simple" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,524 in our German list, against #47,043 for "Sümpfe". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "simple" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Sümpfe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #857,810 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "simple" and "Sümpfe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sample vs Sümpfe". 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 #857,810 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