MeilevsmileWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#15,698
“Meile” frequency rank
#42,680
“mile” frequency rank
58378
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Meile mile
Definition Längenmaß in der Größenordnung von 1 bis 11 Kilometer, früher in Deutschland und Österreich etwa 7,5 Kilometer entsprechend, noch heute offiziell im Vereinigten Königreich und in den Vereinigten Staaten (1,609 Kilometer) sowie inoffiziell noch in Norwegen und Schweden (10 Kilometer) Meile

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
Meile
4 ch
mile

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Meile ([ˈmaɪ̯lə]) and mile ([maɪl]) 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 58378, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Meile is recorded at frequency rank #15,698, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmaɪ̯lə]. mile is at rank #42,680, tagged as anoun, pronounced [maɪl].

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 58378, this pair ranks #865,059 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Meile vs mile

Shared letters: eilm. Private to "Meile": -. Private to "mile": -.

"Meile" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV  ·  "mile" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Meileemile · meiel · meille · melie · miele · mmeile
  • mileimle · miel · mlie · mmile

Frequency comparison

Meile#15,698
mile#42,680

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Meile" and "mile" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmaɪ̯lə] versus [maɪl]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Meile" or "mile"?
"Meile" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,698 in our German list, against #42,680 for "mile". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Meile vs mile

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 “Meile” 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