KaivsKuhTell them apart

Which to use

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

#5,859
“Kai” frequency rank
#6,555
“Kuh” frequency rank
12414
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kai Kuh
Definition befestigtes Ufer in einem Hafen als Schiffsanlegeplatz Muttertier des Hausrinds

Where the eye mixes Kai and Kuh

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch
Kai
3 ch
Kuh

Look-alike desk: Kai vs Kuh

A purely visual mix-up. Kai ([kaɪ̯]) and Kuh ([kuː]) 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 12414, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kai is recorded at frequency rank #5,859, classified as anoun, pronounced [kaɪ̯]. Kuh is at rank #6,555, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kuː].

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 12414, this pair ranks #1,964,335 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Kai vs Kuh

Shared letters: k. Private to "Kai": ai. Private to "Kuh": hu.

"Kai" · 3 letters · shape CVV  ·  "Kuh" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Kai" for "Kuh" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([kaɪ̯] versus [kuː]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Kai" or "Kuh"?
"Kai" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,859 in our German list, against #6,555 for "Kuh". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "Kai" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Kuh" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,964,335 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Kai" and "Kuh" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kai vs KGaA". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,964,335 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list