ekvsEkelWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ek is a preposition, Ekel is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ek” is a preposition and “Ekel” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#23,492
“ek” frequency rank
#17,563
“Ekel” frequency rank
41055
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ek Ekel
Definition aus einem Gebiet oder Raum heraus/hinaus starker körperlicher Abscheu

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ek and Ekel apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch
ek
4 ch
Ekel

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ek is [ɛk] while Ekel is [ˈeːkl̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “ek” sits inside “Ekel”, and the parts of speech differ too (preposition vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41055, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ek is recorded at frequency rank #23,492, classified as aprep, pronounced [ɛk]. Ekel is at rank #17,563, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈeːkl̩].

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 41055, this pair ranks #1,490,671 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ek vs Ekel

Shared letters: ek. Private to "ek": -. Private to "Ekel": l.

"ek" · 2 letters · shape VC  ·  "Ekel" · 4 letters · shape VCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Ekeleekl · ekell · ekkel · keel

Frequency comparison

ek#23,492
Ekel#17,563

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ek" and "Ekel" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ek" is a preposition and "Ekel" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ek" or "Ekel"?
"Ekel" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,563 in our German list, against #23,492 for "ek". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ek vs Ekel

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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