Which to use
“Reif” and “Reife” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,983
- “Reif” frequency rank
- #5,416
- “Reife” frequency rank
- 13399
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Reif | Reife |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | kristalline Ablagerung aus gefrorenem Wasser, die sich in kalten Nächten durch Resublimation an Pflanzen und Gegenständen bildet | Vollendung eines Wachstumsprozesses (bei Menschen physisch oder geistig) |
Where the eye mixes Reif and Reife
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Reif runs 4 letters (CVVC) against Reife's 5 (CVVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Reif and Reife
A purely visual mix-up. Reif ([ʁaɪ̯f]) and Reife ([ˈʁaɪ̯fə]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Reif” sits inside “Reife”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13399, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Reif is recorded at frequency rank #7,983, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʁaɪ̯f]. Reife is at rank #5,416, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʁaɪ̯fə].
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 13399, this pair ranks #1,958,249 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Reif vs Reife
Shared letters: efir. Private to "Reif": -. Private to "Reife": -.
"Reif" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "Reife" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Reif" and "Reife" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Reif" vs "Reife" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Reif" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Reife" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,958,249 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Reif" and "Reife" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rech vs Reif". 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 #1,958,249 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.