MilchvsMildeConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#2,553
“Milch” frequency rank
#9,775
“Milde” frequency rank
12328
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Milch Milde
Definition eine von weiblichen Säugetieren produzierte Nährflüssigkeit für Neugeborene, kann von verschiedenen Tieren auch als Lebensmittel durch Melken gewonnen werden die Charaktereigenschaft der Sanftmut

Where the eye mixes Milch and Milde

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
Milch
5 ch
Milde

Look-alike desk: Milch vs Milde

A purely visual mix-up. Milch ([mɪlç]) and Milde ([ˈmɪldə]) 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 12328, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Milch is recorded at frequency rank #2,553, classified as anoun, pronounced [mɪlç]. Milde is at rank #9,775, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmɪldə].

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 12328, this pair ranks #1,964,822 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Milch vs Milde

Shared letters: ilm. Private to "Milch": ch. Private to "Milde": de.

"Milch" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC  ·  "Milde" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Milchimlch · miclh · milcch · milchh · milhc · millch · mlich · mmilch
  • Mildeimlde · midle · mildde · miled · millde · mlide · mmilde

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Milch" and "Milde" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([mɪlç] versus [ˈmɪldə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Milch" or "Milde" show up more?
"Milch" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,553 in our German list, against #9,775 for "Milde". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "Milch" and "Milde" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Milch" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Milde" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,964,822 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Milch" and "Milde" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Milde vs Milfs". Nearby pair
  • Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #1,964,822 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list