niervsnisWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“nier” and “nis” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#6,419
“nier” frequency rank
#49,821
“nis” frequency rank
56240
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nier nis
Definition Dire qu’une chose n’est pas vraie, soutenir qu’une chose n’est pas. Participe actif présent du verbe ní (« se déplacer »).

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set nier and nis apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
nier
3 ch
nis

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. nier (\nje\) and nis (\nis\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56240, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nier is recorded at frequency rank #6,419, classified as averb, pronounced \nje\. nis is at rank #49,821, tagged as averb, pronounced \nis\.

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 56240, this pair ranks #122,338 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of nier vs nis

Shared letters: in. Private to "nier": er. Private to "nis": s.

"nier" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "nis" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nieriner · neir · nierr · nire · nnier

Frequency comparison

nier#6,419
nis#49,821

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nier" and "nis" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\nje\ versus \nis\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "nier" or "nis"?
"nier" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,419 in our French list, against #49,821 for "nis". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering nier vs nis

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “nier” 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