MeerevsmerleWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#18,625
“Meere” frequency rank
#28,761
“merle” frequency rank
47386
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Meere merle
Definition Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Meer Amsel

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Meere and merle apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Meere
5 ch
merle

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Meere ([ˈmeːʁə]) and merle ([mɛʁl]) 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 47386, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Meere is recorded at frequency rank #18,625, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmeːʁə]. merle is at rank #28,761, tagged as anoun, pronounced [mɛʁl].

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 47386, this pair ranks #1,286,082 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Meere vs merle

Shared letters: emr. Private to "Meere": -. Private to "merle": l.

"Meere" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV  ·  "merle" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Meereemere · meeer · meerre · meree · mmeere
  • merleemrle · melre · merel · merlle · merrle · mmerle · mrele

Frequency comparison

Meere#18,625
merle#28,761

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Meere" and "merle" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmeːʁə] versus [mɛʁl]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Meere" or "merle"?
"Meere" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,625 in our German list, against #28,761 for "merle". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Meere vs merle

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 “Meere” 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