Which to use
“scale” and “Spule” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,769
- “scale” frequency rank
- #31,801
- “Spule” frequency rank
- 63570
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scale | Spule |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Waage | Rolle, die mit einem Faden umwickelt ist |
Where the eye mixes scale and Spule
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. scale and Spule follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between scale and Spule
A purely visual mix-up. scale ([skeɪl]) and Spule ([ˈʃpuːlə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63570, 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]. Spule is at rank #31,801, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃpuːlə].
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 63570, this pair ranks #672,090 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scale vs Spule
Shared letters: els. Private to "scale": ac. Private to "Spule": pu.
"scale" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "Spule" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "scale" and "Spule" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "scale" or "Spule"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "scale" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Spule" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #672,090 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scale" and "Spule" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "skull vs Spule". 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 #672,090 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.