denkbarevsDenkmaleWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: denkbare is a adjective, Denkmale is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“denkbare” is an adjective and “Denkmale” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#43,099
“denkbare” frequency rank
#46,564
“Denkmale” frequency rank
89663
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature denkbare Denkmale
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs denkbar Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Denkmal

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set denkbare and Denkmale apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
denkbare
8 ch
Denkmale

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: denkbare is [ˈdɛŋkbaːʁə] while Denkmale is [ˈdɛŋkˌmaːlə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 89663, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

denkbare is recorded at frequency rank #43,099, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈdɛŋkbaːʁə]. Denkmale is at rank #46,564, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈdɛŋkˌmaːlə].

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 89663, this pair ranks #54,904 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of denkbare vs Denkmale

Shared letters: adekn. Private to "denkbare": br. Private to "Denkmale": lm.

"denkbare" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV  ·  "Denkmale" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • denkbareddenkbare · deknbare · denbkare · denkabre · denkbaer · denkbarre · denkbbare · denkbrae
  • Denkmaleddenkmale · deknmale · denkamle · denkkmale · denkmael · denkmalle · denkmlae · denkmmale

Frequency comparison

denkbare#43,099
Denkmale#46,564

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "denkbare" and "Denkmale" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "denkbare" is an adjective and "Denkmale" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "denkbare" or "Denkmale"?
"denkbare" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #43,099 in our German list, against #46,564 for "Denkmale". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering denkbare vs Denkmale

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “denkbare”; for a noun, it's “Denkmale”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “denkbare” 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