genitalvsgenitalsWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: genital is a adjective, genitals is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“genital” is an adjective and “genitals” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#16,031
“genital” frequency rank
#22,096
“genitals” frequency rank
38127
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature genital genitals
Definition Of or relating to biological reproduction. Synonym of genitalia.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set genital and genitals apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
genital
8 ch
genitals

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: genital is anadjective and genitalsanoun. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “genital” sits inside “genitals”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38127, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

genital is recorded at frequency rank #16,031, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɛnətəl/. genitals is at rank #22,096, tagged as anoun.

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 38127, this pair ranks #288,597 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of genital vs genitals

Shared letters: aegilnt. Private to "genital": -. Private to "genitals": s.

"genital" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "genitals" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • genitalegnital · geintal · geniatl · genitall · genitla · genittal · gennital · gential
  • genitalsegnitals · geintals · geniatls · genitalls · genitalss · genitasl · genitlas · genittals

Frequency comparison

genital#16,031
genitals#22,096

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "genital" and "genitals" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "genital" is an adjective and "genitals" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "genital" or "genitals"?
"genital" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,031 in our English list, against #22,096 for "genitals". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering genital vs genitals

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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