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 eye mixes Joke and jour
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. Joke (CVCV) and jour (CVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses Joke with jour
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
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Joke" for "jour" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Joke" or "jour"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Joke" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "jour" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,034,391 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Joke" and "jour" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Josua vs jour". 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 #1,034,391 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.