natives

[naˈtiːvəs]

/[naˈtiːvəs]/ adj

The verdict

“natives” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #49,924 in German word frequency and used as an adjective.

#49,924
frequency rank, German
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nativ

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

natives vs negatives
78% similar
natives vs naive
71% similar
natives vs native
86% similar

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

Key facts for natives
PropertyValue
Headwordnatives
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAdjective
IPA[naˈtiːvəs]
Letters7
Frequency rank#49,924
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “natives” 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). natives lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for natives is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [naˈtiːvəs]. Corpus data places it at rank #49,924 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for natives, with forms such as "antives", "naitves", and "natievs". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 6 confusable-pair relationships, "negatives", "naive", "native", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is natives, spelled N-A-T-I-V-E-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nativ
  2. 2
    Akkusativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nativ
  3. 3
    Nominativ Singular Neutrum der gemischten Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nativ
  4. 4
    Akkusativ Singular Neutrum der gemischten Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nativ

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: antives,naitves,natievs,nativess,nativse,nativves,nattives,natvies,nnatives,ntaives

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of natives - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

antives2naitves2natievs2nativess1nativse2nativves1nattives1natvies2
Edit distance from "natives"

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "natives"?
"natives" is spelled N-A-T-I-V-E-S. The IPA pronunciation is [naˈtiːvəs].
What does "natives" mean?
As an adjective, "natives" means: Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nativ
What words are commonly confused with "natives"?
"natives" is commonly confused with "negatives", "naive", "native". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "natives"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "natives" is [naˈtiːvəs]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "natives" come from?
"natives" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

Using “natives”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is N-A-T-I-V-E-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [naˈtiːvəs] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “negatives” - see the side-by-side comparison. natives vs negatives
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list