batesvsbaueWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“bates” and “baue” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#34,536
“bates” frequency rank
#12,670
“baue” frequency rank
47206
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bates baue
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bate 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bauen

Letter map: bates vs baue

Shared letters muted; letters that set bates and baue apart highlighted. Shared run: 3.

5 ch
bates
4 ch
baue

Corpus notes: bates and baue

bates and baue are indexed as a confusable German pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47206, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bates is recorded at frequency rank #34,536, classified as averb, pronounced […]. baue is at rank #12,670, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbaʊ̯ə].

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 47206, this pair ranks #1,292,547 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of bates vs baue

Shared letters: abe. Private to "bates": st. Private to "baue": u.

"bates" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "baue" · 4 letters · shape CVVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • batesbatess · batse · battes · bbates · btaes
  • baueabue · baeu · bbaue · buae

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "bates" for "baue" ever safe?
No. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Frequency check: "bates" vs "baue" - which ranks higher?
"baue" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,670 in our German list, against #34,536 for "bates". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

You've compared "bates" and "baue". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "bates" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "baue" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,292,547 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bates" and "baue" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bates vs puzzles". 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 #1,292,547 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list