SpiegelsvsspielsWhat's the difference?

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

By · Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org ·

Which to use

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

#40,852
“Spiegels” frequency rank
#5,427
“spiels” frequency rank
46279
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Spiegels spiels
Definition Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Spiegel 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs spiel

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Spiegels and spiels apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
Spiegels
6 ch
spiels

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Spiegels is anoun and spielsaverb. On the page they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46279, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Spiegels is recorded at frequency rank #40,852, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃpiːɡl̩s]. spiels is at rank #5,427, 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 46279, this pair ranks #1,324,586 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Spiegels vs spiels

Shared letters: eilps. Private to "Spiegels": g. Private to "spiels": -.

"Spiegels" · 8 letters · shape CCVVCVCC  ·  "spiels" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Spiegels ← psiegels · sipegels · speigels · spieegls · spiegells · spiegelss · spiegesl · spieggels
  • spiels ← psiels · sipels · speils · spiells · spielss · spiesl · spiles · sppiels

Frequency comparison

Spiegels#40,852
spiels#5,427

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Spiegels" and "spiels" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Spiegels" is a noun and "spiels" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Spiegels" or "spiels"?
"spiels" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,427 in our German list, against #40,852 for "Spiegels". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Spiegels vs spiels

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Spiegels”; for a verb, it's “spiels”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Spiegels” 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