Which to use
“Telegramm” and “Telegraph” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,167
- “Telegramm” frequency rank
- #32,309
- “Telegraph” frequency rank
- 54476
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Telegramm | Telegraph |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mithilfe eines akustischen, optischen oder elektrischen Gerätes übertragene schriftliche Nachricht | technisches Gerät zur elektrischen Übermittlung von Nachrichten |
Where the eye mixes Telegramm and Telegraph
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Telegramm and Telegraph
A purely visual mix-up. Telegramm ([teleˈɡʁam]) and Telegraph ([teleˈɡʁaːf]) 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 54476, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Telegramm is recorded at frequency rank #22,167, classified as anoun, pronounced [teleˈɡʁam]. Telegraph is at rank #32,309, tagged as anoun, pronounced [teleˈɡʁaːf].
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 54476, this pair ranks #1,017,400 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Telegramm vs Telegraph
Shared letters: aeglrt. Private to "Telegramm": m. Private to "Telegraph": hp.
"Telegramm" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC · "Telegraph" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Telegramm" for "Telegraph" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Telegramm" or "Telegraph" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Telegramm" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Telegraph" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,017,400 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- 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 #1,017,400 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.