Which to use
“Ballade” and “Ballast” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,835
- “Ballade” frequency rank
- #25,455
- “Ballast” frequency rank
- 45290
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Ballade | Ballast |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein langes Gedicht, welches in den meisten Fällen einen tragischen Ausgang hat | Stoff oder Bauteil, das für seine Größe vergleichsweise schwer ist und zur Stabilisierung des Objektes, auf welchem es geladen ist (zum Beispiel auf Schiffen, Ballonen, U-Booten und anderen Tauchfahrzeugen) dient |
Where the eye mixes Ballade and Ballast
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Ballade and Ballast
A purely visual mix-up. Ballade ([baˈlaːdə]) and Ballast ([ˈbalast]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45290, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Ballade is recorded at frequency rank #19,835, classified as anoun, pronounced [baˈlaːdə]. Ballast is at rank #25,455, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbalast].
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 45290, this pair ranks #1,358,077 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Ballade vs Ballast
Shared letters: abl. Private to "Ballade": de. Private to "Ballast": st.
"Ballade" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "Ballast" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Ballade" and "Ballast" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Ballade" vs "Ballast" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Ballade" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Ballast" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,358,077 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Ballade" and "Ballast" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Ballast vs ballet". 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 #1,358,077 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.