Which to use
“table” and “tail” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,788
- “table” frequency rank
- #40,881
- “tail” frequency rank
- 62669
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | table | tail |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tisch | Schwanz |
Where the eye mixes table and tail
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses table with tail
A purely visual mix-up. table ([ˈteɪbl]) and tail ([teɪl]) 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 62669, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
table is recorded at frequency rank #21,788, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈteɪbl]. tail is at rank #40,881, tagged as anoun, pronounced [teɪl].
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 62669, this pair ranks #704,408 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of table vs tail
Shared letters: alt. Private to "table": be. Private to "tail": i.
"table" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "tail" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "table" for "tail" ever safe?
Frequency check: "table" vs "tail" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "table" and "tail" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "table" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tail" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #704,408 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "table" and "tail" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tail vs taut". 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 #704,408 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.