SpaltvsSpäthWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Spalt is a noun, Späth is a name, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Spalt” is a noun and “Späth” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#22,511
“Spalt” frequency rank
#47,741
“Späth” frequency rank
70252
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Spalt Späth
Definition eine rissförmige Öffnung deutscher Nachname, Familienname

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
Spalt
5 ch
Späth

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Spalt is anoun and Späthaname. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 70252, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Spalt is recorded at frequency rank #22,511, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃpalt]. Späth is at rank #47,741, tagged as aname, 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 70252, this pair ranks #451,945 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Spalt vs Späth

Shared letters: pst. Private to "Spalt": al. Private to "Späth": .

"Spalt" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC  ·  "Späth" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Spaltpsalt · saplt · spallt · spaltt · spatl · splat · sppalt · sspalt

Frequency comparison

Spalt#22,511
Späth#47,741

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Spalt" and "Späth" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Spalt" is a noun and "Späth" a name, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Spalt" or "Späth"?
"Spalt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,511 in our German list, against #47,741 for "Späth". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Spalt vs Späth

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Spalt”; for a name, it's “Späth”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Spalt” 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