JokevsjourWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“Joke” and “jour” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#24,394
“Joke” frequency rank
#29,647
“jour” frequency rank
54041
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Joke jour
Definition eine kleine (fiktive) Erzählung, Geschichte oder dergleichen, die zum Lachen anregen soll Tag

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
Joke
4 ch
jour

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Joke ([d͡ʒoʊ̯k]) and jour ([ʒuʁ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54041, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Joke is recorded at frequency rank #24,394, classified as anoun, pronounced [d͡ʒoʊ̯k]. jour is at rank #29,647, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʒuʁ].

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 54041, this pair ranks #1,034,391 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Joke vs jour

Shared letters: jo. Private to "Joke": ek. Private to "jour": ru.

"Joke" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "jour" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Jokejjoke · jkoe · joek · jokke · ojke
  • jourjjour · joru · jourr · juor · ojur

Frequency comparison

Joke#24,394
jour#29,647

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Joke" and "jour" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([d͡ʒoʊ̯k] versus [ʒuʁ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Joke" or "jour"?
"Joke" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,394 in our German list, against #29,647 for "jour". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Joke vs jour

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Joke” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list