sammlevssmileConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#23,293
“sammle” frequency rank
#30,288
“smile” frequency rank
53581
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sammle smile
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs sammeln die Mundwinkel nach oben ziehen, um Freude auszudrücken; lächeln, schmunzeln

Where the eye mixes sammle and smile

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. sammle runs 6 letters (CVCCCV) against smile's 5 (CCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
sammle
5 ch
smile

Why the eye confuses sammle with smile

A purely visual mix-up. sammle ([ˈzamlə]) and smile ([smaɪl]) 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 53581, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sammle is recorded at frequency rank #23,293, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈzamlə]. smile is at rank #30,288, tagged as averb, pronounced [smaɪl].

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 53581, this pair ranks #1,052,404 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of sammle vs smile

Shared letters: elms. Private to "sammle": a. Private to "smile": i.

"sammle" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "smile" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sammle ← asmmle · samle · samlme · sammlle · smamle · ssammle
  • smile ← msile · simle · smiel · smille · smlie · smmile · ssmile

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sammle" and "smile" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzamlə] versus [smaɪl]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "sammle" or "smile"?
"sammle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,293 in our German list, against #30,288 for "smile". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "sammle" and "smile" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "sammle" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "smile" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,052,404 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sammle" and "smile" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "smile vs Stilen". 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 #1,052,404 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