talevsTankeWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#32,304
“tale” frequency rank
#32,305
“Tanke” frequency rank
64609
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tale Tanke
Definition Bericht Tankstelle

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
tale
5 ch
Tanke

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tale ([ˈteɪl]) and Tanke ([ˈtaŋkə]) 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 64609, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tale is recorded at frequency rank #32,304, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈteɪl]. Tanke is at rank #32,305, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈtaŋkə].

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 64609, this pair ranks #635,446 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of tale vs Tanke

Shared letters: aet. Private to "tale": l. Private to "Tanke": kn.

"tale" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "Tanke" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • taletael · talle · tlae · ttale
  • Tankeatnke · takne · tanek · tankke · tannke · tnake · ttanke

Frequency comparison

tale#32,304
Tanke#32,305

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tale" and "Tanke" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈteɪl] versus [ˈtaŋkə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tale" or "Tanke"?
"tale" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #32,304 in our German list, against #32,305 for "Tanke". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tale vs Tanke

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tale” 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