SakevsscaleWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#47,710
“Sake” frequency rank
#31,769
“scale” frequency rank
79479
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Sake scale
Definition japanisches alkoholisches Getränk, das aus mit Hefe vergorenem Reis hergestellt wird und heiß getrunken wird Waage

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Sake and scale apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
Sake
5 ch
scale

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Sake ([ˈzaːkə]) and scale ([skeɪl]) 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 79479, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Sake is recorded at frequency rank #47,710, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈzaːkə]. scale is at rank #31,769, tagged as anoun, pronounced [skeɪl].

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 79479, this pair ranks #215,660 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Sake vs scale

Shared letters: aes. Private to "Sake": k. Private to "scale": cl.

"Sake" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "scale" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Sakeaske · saek · sakke · skae · ssake
  • scalecsale · sacle · scael · scalle · sccale · sclae · sscale

Frequency comparison

Sake#47,710
scale#31,769

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Sake" and "scale" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzaːkə] versus [skeɪl]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Sake" or "scale"?
"scale" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #31,769 in our German list, against #47,710 for "Sake". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Sake vs scale

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Sake” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list