Which to use
“wirr” and “wirres” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #28,022
- “wirr” frequency rank
- #45,705
- “wirres” frequency rank
- 73727
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wirr | wirres |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | von Verwirrtheit oder Verworrenheit geprägt; ohne (erkennbare) Ordnung; so, dass etwas durcheinander beziehungsweise nicht durchschaubar ist | Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs wirr |
Where the eye mixes wirr and wirres
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. wirr runs 4 letters (CVCC) against wirres's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: wirr vs wirres
A purely visual mix-up. wirr ([vɪʁ]) and wirres ([ˈvɪʁəs]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “wirr” sits inside “wirres”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73727, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wirr is recorded at frequency rank #28,022, classified as anadj, pronounced [vɪʁ]. wirres is at rank #45,705, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈvɪʁəs].
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 73727, this pair ranks #352,501 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of wirr vs wirres
Shared letters: irw. Private to "wirr": -. Private to "wirres": es.
"wirr" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "wirres" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "wirr" for "wirres" ever safe?
Frequency check: "wirr" vs "wirres" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "wirr" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wirres" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #352,501 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "wirr" and "wirres" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "wirre vs wirres". 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 #352,501 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.