kahlvsKäseWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: kahl is a adjective, Käse is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“kahl” is an adjective and “Käse” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#19,269
“kahl” frequency rank
#3,754
“Käse” frequency rank
23023
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature kahl Käse
Definition nicht behaart ein festes Milchprodukt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set kahl and Käse apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
kahl
4 ch
Käse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: kahl is [kaːl] while Käse is [ˈkɛːzə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23023, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

kahl is recorded at frequency rank #19,269, classified as anadj, pronounced [kaːl]. Käse is at rank #3,754, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɛːzə].

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 23023, this pair ranks #1,866,739 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of kahl vs Käse

Shared letters: k. Private to "kahl": ahl. Private to "Käse": esä.

"kahl" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Käse" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • kahlakhl · kahhl · kahll · kalh · khal · kkahl

Frequency comparison

kahl#19,269
Käse#3,754

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "kahl" and "Käse" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "kahl" is an adjective and "Käse" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "kahl" or "Käse"?
"Käse" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,754 in our German list, against #19,269 for "kahl". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering kahl vs Käse

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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