talevsTasseWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#32,304
“tale” frequency rank
#6,364
“Tasse” frequency rank
38668
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tale Tasse
Definition Bericht mit einem Henkel versehenes, kleines Trinkgefäß von mannigfaltiger Form

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
tale
5 ch
Tasse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tale ([ˈteɪl]) and Tasse ([ˈtasə]) 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 38668, 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]. Tasse is at rank #6,364, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈtasə].

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 38668, this pair ranks #1,557,819 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of tale vs Tasse

Shared letters: aet. Private to "tale": l. Private to "Tasse": s.

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

Known mistypes of this pair

  • taletael · talle · tlae · ttale
  • Tasseatsse · tase · tases · taße · tsase · ttasse

Frequency comparison

tale#32,304
Tasse#6,364

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tale" and "Tasse" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈteɪl] versus [ˈtasə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tale" or "Tasse"?
"Tasse" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,364 in our German list, against #32,304 for "tale". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tale vs Tasse

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