IR

abbrev

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“IR” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #14,329) as an abbreviation. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#14,329
frequency rank, German
1,488
“I” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - infrarot, Infrarot

Corpus desk

Index DE-ir · IR · German

IR · rank #14,329 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #14,329
  • LEN-SHORT 2 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,488
  • PHOTO-FINISH images

Nearest frequency peer: images (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “IR”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “IR” sits against the nearest ranked German headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

IR vs is
0% similar
IR vs IT
50% similar
IR vs ix
0% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for IR
PropertyValue
HeadwordIR
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAbbreviation
Letters2
Frequency rank#14,329
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “IR” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). IR lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for IR is neighbouring look-alikes ("is", "IT", …), not just typos; it is anabbreviation. Frequency #14,329 among 1,488 “I” headwords. 5 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for IR, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "is", "IT", "ix", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is IR, spelled I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    infrarot, Infrarot
  2. 2
    Interregio
  3. 3
    Investor Relations
  4. 4
    Information Retrieval
  5. 5
    Infanterieregiment

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how IR appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. IR findet zahlreiche technische Anwendungen.
  2. Fährst Du nachher mit einem IC oder einem IR nach Hause?

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "IR"?
"IR" is spelled I-R.
What does "IR" mean?
As an abbreviation, "IR" means: infrarot, Infrarot
What words are commonly confused with "IR"?
"IR" is commonly confused with "is", "IT", "ix". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What language does "IR" come from?
"IR" is a German word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

What to do next

You've looked up "IR". Here's where to go from here.

  • "IR" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "is". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #14,329 among German headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more German words in the "I" letter cohort. I–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list