PikevsPinkeWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#32,209
“Pike” frequency rank
#44,131
“Pinke” frequency rank
76340
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Pike Pinke
Definition eine Stangenwaffe von Fußsoldaten Segelschiff im Küstenmeer der Nord- und Ostsee

Where the eye mixes Pike and Pinke

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Pike runs 4 letters (CVCV) against Pinke's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

4 ch
Pike
5 ch
Pinke

Why the eye confuses Pike with Pinke

A purely visual mix-up. Pike ([ˈpiːkə]) and Pinke ([ˈpɪŋkə]) 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 76340, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Pike is recorded at frequency rank #32,209, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpiːkə]. Pinke is at rank #44,131, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpɪŋkə].

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 76340, this pair ranks #286,209 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Pike vs Pinke

Shared letters: eikp. Private to "Pike": -. Private to "Pinke": n.

"Pike" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "Pinke" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Pike ← ipke · piek · pikke · pkie · ppike
  • Pinke ← ipnke · pikne · pinek · pinkke · pinnke · pnike · ppinke

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Pike" and "Pinke" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈpiːkə] versus [ˈpɪŋkə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Pike" vs "Pinke" - which ranks higher?
"Pike" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #32,209 in our German list, against #44,131 for "Pinke". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Pike" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Pinke" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #286,209 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Pike" and "Pinke" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "picken vs Pinke". 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 #286,209 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