Which to use
“dare” is a verb and “dear” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #44,517
- “dare” frequency rank
- #30,506
- “dear” frequency rank
- 75023
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dare | dear |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | es wagen, zu (+Infinitiv); den Mut haben, zu (+Infinitiv) | lieb, teuer, süß, entzückend, reizend, herzig |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dare and dear apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dare is [deə(ɹ)] while dear is [diɹ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they are an anagram pair: the same letters reordered, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 75023, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dare is recorded at frequency rank #44,517, classified as averb, pronounced [deə(ɹ)]. dear is at rank #30,506, tagged as anadj, pronounced [diɹ].
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 75023, this pair ranks #318,402 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of dare vs dear
Shared letters: ader. Private to "dare": -. Private to "dear": -.
"dare" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "dear" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "dare" and "dear" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "dare" or "dear"?
Remembering dare vs dear
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “dare”; for an adjective, it's “dear”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dare” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable