Which to use
“re” is a particle and “RTL” is an abbrev - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,150
- “re” frequency rank
- #4,300
- “RTL” frequency rank
- 8450
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | re | RTL |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | beim Solmisieren oder Solfeggieren benutzte Silbe zum Singen eines bestimmten Tons aus der Tonleiter | Radio Télé Lëtzebuerg: deutschsprachiger privater Fernsehsender |
Where the eye mixes re and RTL
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses re with RTL
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: re is [ʁeː] while RTL is [ɛʁ teː ˈʔɛl]. 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 (particle vs abbrev), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8450, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
re is recorded at frequency rank #4,150, classified as aparticle, pronounced [ʁeː]. RTL is at rank #4,300, tagged as anabbrev, pronounced [ɛʁ teː ˈʔɛl].
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 8450, this pair ranks #1,984,215 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of re vs RTL
Shared letters: r. Private to "re": e. Private to "RTL": lt.
"re" · 2 letters · shape CV · "RTL" · 3 letters · shape CCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "re" for "RTL" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "re" or "RTL" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "re" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "RTL" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,984,215 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "re" and "RTL" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "RTL vs RUB". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,984,215 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.