Which to use
“Esel” and “ewe” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,358
- “Esel” frequency rank
- #34,085
- “ewe” frequency rank
- 42443
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Esel | ewe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zur Gattung der Pferde gehörendes (männliches) Huftier, das ein (je nach Art / Unterart) graues bis braunes, fahlgelbes bis ockerfarbenes oder rötliches bis rotbraunes Fell mit dunklem Aalstrich, eine kurze, aufrecht stehende Nackenmähne, lange Ohren und einen Quastenschwanz besitzt und dessen domestizierte Vertreter als Nutz-, Last- und Reittier dienen (Asinus) | Ramme, weibliches Schaf, Mutterschaf |
Where the eye mixes Esel and ewe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Esel with ewe
A purely visual mix-up. Esel ([ˈeːzl̩]) and ewe ([juː]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42443, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Esel is recorded at frequency rank #8,358, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈeːzl̩]. ewe is at rank #34,085, tagged as anoun, pronounced [juː].
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 42443, this pair ranks #1,449,107 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Esel vs ewe
Shared letters: e. Private to "Esel": ls. Private to "ewe": w.
"Esel" · 4 letters · shape VCVC · "ewe" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- Esel ← eesl · esell · esle · essel
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Esel" for "ewe" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Esel" or "ewe"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Esel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ewe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,449,107 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Esel" and "ewe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Erle vs ewe". 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 #1,449,107 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.