Which to use
“wenig” is a pronoun and “wig” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #305
- “wenig” frequency rank
- #46,402
- “wig” frequency rank
- 46707
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wenig | wig |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine unbestimmte, kleine Anzahl oder Menge von etwas | die Perücke |
Where the eye mixes wenig and wig
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses wenig with wig
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: wenig is [ˈveːnɪç] while wig is [wɪɡ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (pronoun vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46707, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wenig is recorded at frequency rank #305, classified as apron, pronounced [ˈveːnɪç]. wig is at rank #46,402, tagged as anoun, pronounced [wɪɡ].
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 46707, this pair ranks #1,309,798 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of wenig vs wig
Shared letters: giw. Private to "wenig": en. Private to "wig": -.
"wenig" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "wig" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- wenig ← ewnig · weing · wengi · wenigg · wennig · wneig · wwenig
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "wenig" for "wig" ever safe?
Frequency check: "wenig" vs "wig" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "wenig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wig" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,309,798 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "wenig" and "wig" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "wig vs wit". 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 #1,309,798 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.