KältevsKarteiWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#5,974
“Kälte” frequency rank
#48,265
“Kartei” frequency rank
54239
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kälte Kartei
Definition niedrige Temperatur nach einem bestimmten Prinzip sortierte Sammlung von Daten auf Karten oder Blättern gleichen Formats

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Kälte and Kartei apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Kälte
6 ch
Kartei

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Kälte ([ˈkɛltə]) and Kartei ([kaʁˈtaɪ̯]) 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 54239, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kälte is recorded at frequency rank #5,974, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɛltə]. Kartei is at rank #48,265, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kaʁˈtaɪ̯].

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 54239, this pair ranks #1,026,625 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Kälte vs Kartei

Shared letters: ekt. Private to "Kälte": . Private to "Kartei": air.

"Kälte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "Kartei" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Karteiakrtei · kareti · karrtei · kartie · karttei · katrei · kkartei · kratei

Frequency comparison

Kälte#5,974
Kartei#48,265

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Kälte" and "Kartei" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkɛltə] versus [kaʁˈtaɪ̯]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Kälte" or "Kartei"?
"Kälte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,974 in our German list, against #48,265 for "Kartei". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Kälte vs Kartei

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 “Kälte” 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