Which to use
“Alpe” is a noun and “are” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #35,610
- “Alpe” frequency rank
- #4,019
- “are” frequency rank
- 39629
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Alpe | are |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Bergweide in den Alpen; auch der zugehörige Betrieb | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens des Verbs be |
Where the eye mixes Alpe and are
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Alpe and are
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Alpe is [ˈalpə] while are is [ə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39629, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Alpe is recorded at frequency rank #35,610, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈalpə]. are is at rank #4,019, tagged as averb, pronounced [ə].
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 39629, this pair ranks #1,531,403 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Alpe vs are
Shared letters: ae. Private to "Alpe": lp. Private to "are": r.
"Alpe" · 4 letters · shape VCCV · "are" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- Alpe ← alep · allpe · alppe · lape
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Alpe" for "are" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Alpe" or "are" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Alpe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "are" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,531,403 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Alpe" and "are" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Alpe vs Atze". 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 #1,531,403 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.