Which to use
“Intention” and “Intonation” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,596
- “Intention” frequency rank
- #46,048
- “Intonation” frequency rank
- 60644
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Intention | Intonation |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | die Absicht, etwas zu tun | Zusammenwirken von Akzentuierung, Tonhöhenverlauf und Sprechpausen in der gesprochenen Sprache; Bußmann definiert: „Im weiteren Sinne: Gesamtheit der prosodischen Eigenschaften lautsprachlicher Äußerungen (Silben, Wörter, Phrasen)'“ |
Where the eye mixes Intention and Intonation
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Intention vs Intonation
A purely visual mix-up. Intention ([ɪntɛnˈt͡si̯oːn]) and Intonation ([ɪntonaˈt͡si̯oːn]) 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 60644, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Intention is recorded at frequency rank #14,596, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɪntɛnˈt͡si̯oːn]. Intonation is at rank #46,048, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɪntonaˈt͡si̯oːn].
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 60644, this pair ranks #779,285 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Intention vs Intonation
Shared letters: inot. Private to "Intention": e. Private to "Intonation": a.
"Intention" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVVC · "Intonation" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Intention ← inetntion · inntention · inteniton · intenntion · intentino · intentionn · intentoin · intenttion
- Intonation ← inntonation · inotnation · intnoation · intoantion · intonaiton · intonatino · intonationn · intonatoin
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Intention" and "Intonation" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Intention" or "Intonation" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Intention" and "Intonation" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Intention" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Intonation" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #779,285 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Intention" and "Intonation" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Innovation vs Intonation". 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 #779,285 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.