KontrollevsKontrolleurWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,395
“Kontrolle” frequency rank
#49,839
“Kontrolleur” frequency rank
51234
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kontrolle Kontrolleur
Definition Handlung, mit der man jemanden/etwas prüft, um festzustellen, ob alles in Ordnung ist Person, die beruflich Kontrollen/Überprüfungen durchführt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Kontrolle and Kontrolleur apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
Kontrolle
11 ch
Kontrolleur

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Kontrolle ([kɔnˈtʁɔlə]) and Kontrolleur ([kɔntʁɔˈløːɐ̯]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “Kontrolle” sits inside “Kontrolleur”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51234, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kontrolle is recorded at frequency rank #1,395, classified as anoun, pronounced [kɔnˈtʁɔlə]. Kontrolleur is at rank #49,839, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kɔntʁɔˈløːɐ̯].

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 51234, this pair ranks #1,143,394 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Kontrolle vs Kontrolleur

Shared letters: eklnort. Private to "Kontrolle": -. Private to "Kontrolleur": u.

"Kontrolle" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCCV  ·  "Kontrolleur" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Kontrollekkontrolle · knotrolle · konntrolle · konrtolle · kontorlle · kontrlole · kontrole · kontrolel
  • Kontrolleurkkontrolleur · knotrolleur · konntrolleur · konrtolleur · kontorlleur · kontrloleur · kontrolelur · kontroleur

Frequency comparison

Kontrolle#1,395
Kontrolleur#49,839

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Kontrolle" and "Kontrolleur" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kɔnˈtʁɔlə] versus [kɔntʁɔˈløːɐ̯]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Kontrolle" or "Kontrolleur"?
"Kontrolle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,395 in our German list, against #49,839 for "Kontrolleur". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Kontrolle vs Kontrolleur

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 “Kontrolle” 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