Which to use
“Motor” and “Motte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,775
- “Motor” frequency rank
- #32,677
- “Motte” frequency rank
- 35452
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Motor | Motte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | antreibende Maschine | Kleinschmetterling mit etwa 1 cm spannenden schmalen Flügeln, dessen Raupe unter anderem Wolle, Seide, Pelzwerk und Tapeten befällt |
Where the eye mixes Motor and Motte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Motor (CVCVC) and Motte (CVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses Motor with Motte
A purely visual mix-up. Motor ([ˈmoːtoːɐ̯]) and Motte ([ˈmɔtə]) 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 35452, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Motor is recorded at frequency rank #2,775, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmoːtoːɐ̯]. Motte is at rank #32,677, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmɔtə].
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 35452, this pair ranks #1,639,644 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Motor vs Motte
Shared letters: mot. Private to "Motor": r. Private to "Motte": e.
"Motor" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "Motte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Motor" and "Motte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "Motor" vs "Motte" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Motor" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Motte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,639,644 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Motor" and "Motte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Möhre vs Motte". 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 #1,639,644 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.