meidevsmerkeWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#38,897
“meide” frequency rank
#6,565
“merke” frequency rank
45462
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature meide merke
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs meiden 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs merken

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
meide
5 ch
merke

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. meide ([ˈmaɪ̯də]) and merke ([ˈmɛʁkə]) 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 45462, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

meide is recorded at frequency rank #38,897, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmaɪ̯də]. merke is at rank #6,565, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈmɛʁkə].

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 45462, this pair ranks #1,352,188 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of meide vs merke

Shared letters: em. Private to "meide": di. Private to "merke": kr.

"meide" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV  ·  "merke" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • meideemide · medie · meidde · meied · miede · mmeide
  • merkeemrke · mekre · merek · merkke · merrke · mmerke · mreke

Frequency comparison

meide#38,897
merke#6,565

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "meide" and "merke" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmaɪ̯də] versus [ˈmɛʁkə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "meide" or "merke"?
"merke" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,565 in our German list, against #38,897 for "meide". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering meide vs merke

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 “meide” 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