Which to use
“melk” is an adjective and “merkt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #41,987
- “melk” frequency rank
- #2,912
- “merkt” frequency rank
- 44899
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | melk | merkt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Milch gebend | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs merken |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set melk and merkt apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: melk is [mɛlk] while merkt is [mɛʁkt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44899, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
melk is recorded at frequency rank #41,987, classified as anadj, pronounced [mɛlk]. merkt is at rank #2,912, tagged as averb, pronounced [mɛʁkt].
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 44899, this pair ranks #1,371,035 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of melk vs merkt
Shared letters: ekm. Private to "melk": l. Private to "merkt": rt.
"melk" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "merkt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "melk" and "merkt" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "melk" or "merkt"?
Remembering melk vs merkt
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “melk”; for a verb, it's “merkt”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “melk” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable