KaplanvskarlaWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#17,049
“Kaplan” frequency rank
#33,140
“karla” frequency rank
50189
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kaplan karla
Definition Geistlicher, der für eine spezielle Einrichtung (zum Beispiel eine Kapelle) zuständig ist, oder der nach der Priesterweihe zunächst einem Pfarrer zugeordnet ist Akkusativ Plural des Substantivs karl

Where the eye mixes Kaplan and karla

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
Kaplan
5 ch
karla

Why the eye confuses Kaplan with karla

A purely visual mix-up. Kaplan ([kaˈplaːn]) and karla ([ˈkartla]) 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 50189, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kaplan is recorded at frequency rank #17,049, classified as anoun, pronounced [kaˈplaːn]. karla is at rank #33,140, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkartla].

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 50189, this pair ranks #1,183,212 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Kaplan vs karla

Shared letters: akl. Private to "Kaplan": np. Private to "karla": r.

"Kaplan" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "karla" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Kaplanakplan · kalpan · kapaln · kaplann · kapllan · kaplna · kapplan · kkaplan
  • karlaakrla · kalra · karal · karlla · karrla · kkarla · krala

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Kaplan" for "karla" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([kaˈplaːn] versus [ˈkartla]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Kaplan" or "karla"?
"Kaplan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,049 in our German list, against #33,140 for "karla". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Kaplan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "karla" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,183,212 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Kaplan" and "karla" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "karge vs karla". 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 #1,183,212 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