Which to use
“scale” is a noun and “scans” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #31,769
- “scale” frequency rank
- #37,182
- “scans” frequency rank
- 68951
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scale | scans |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Waage | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scan |
Letter map: scale vs scans
Shared letters muted; letters that set scale and scans apart highlighted. Shared run: 3. scale (CCVCV) and scans (CCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Part-of-speech tell for scale / scans
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: scale is anoun and scansaverb. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 68951, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scale is recorded at frequency rank #31,769, classified as anoun, pronounced [skeɪl]. scans is at rank #37,182, tagged as averb, pronounced […].
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 68951, this pair ranks #491,720 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of scale vs scans
Shared letters: acs. Private to "scale": el. Private to "scans": n.
"scale" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "scans" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scale" for "scans" ever safe?
Which is more common, "scale" or "scans"?
After this comparison
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "scale" and "scans".
- Full dictionary entry for "scale" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scans" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #491,720 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scale" and "scans" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "puzzles vs scans". 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 #491,720 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.