Which to use
“Panne” and “Pate” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,715
- “Panne” frequency rank
- #19,335
- “Pate” frequency rank
- 35050
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Panne | Pate |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plötzlich eintretender Schaden; Nichtfunktionieren von Technik, insbesondere Fahrzeugtechnik | Ehrenamt in christlichen Kirchen zur Unterstützung der Eltern bei der religiösen Erziehung und Zeuge bei einer Sakramentsspendung |
Where the eye mixes Panne and Pate
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Panne vs Pate
A purely visual mix-up. Panne ([ˈpanə]) and Pate ([ˈpaːtə]) 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 35050, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Panne is recorded at frequency rank #15,715, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpanə]. Pate is at rank #19,335, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpaːtə].
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 35050, this pair ranks #1,649,240 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Panne vs Pate
Shared letters: aep. Private to "Panne": n. Private to "Pate": t.
"Panne" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "Pate" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Panne" for "Pate" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Panne" vs "Pate" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Panne" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Pate" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,649,240 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Panne" and "Pate" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Pate vs Pau". 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 #1,649,240 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.