SpaltvsSpuleWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#22,511
“Spalt” frequency rank
#31,801
“Spule” frequency rank
54312
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Spalt Spule
Definition eine rissförmige Öffnung Rolle, die mit einem Faden umwickelt ist

Where the eye mixes Spalt and Spule

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
Spalt
5 ch
Spule

Look-alike desk: Spalt vs Spule

A purely visual mix-up. Spalt ([ʃpalt]) 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 54312, 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]. 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 54312, this pair ranks #1,023,782 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Spalt vs Spule

Shared letters: lps. Private to "Spalt": at. Private to "Spule": eu.

"Spalt" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC  ·  "Spule" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Spaltpsalt · saplt · spallt · spaltt · spatl · splat · sppalt · sspalt
  • Spulepsule · splue · sppule · spuel · spulle · sspule · suple

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Spalt" and "Spule" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ʃpalt] versus [ˈʃpuːlə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Spalt" or "Spule"?
"Spalt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,511 in our German list, against #31,801 for "Spule". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Spalt" 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 #1,023,782 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Spalt" 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 #1,023,782 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