Which to use
“Than” and “thing” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #13,037
- “Than” frequency rank
- #18,088
- “thing” frequency rank
- 31125
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Than | thing |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Gefolgsmann des Königs oder eines Fürsten bei den Angelsachsen; seit dem 10. Jahrhundert erblicher Großgrundbesitzer | ein materielles Objekt, ohne Bewusstsein |
Where the eye mixes Than and thing
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Than and thing
A purely visual mix-up. Than ([taːn]) and thing ([θɪŋ]) 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 31125, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Than is recorded at frequency rank #13,037, classified as anoun, pronounced [taːn]. thing is at rank #18,088, tagged as anoun, pronounced [θɪŋ].
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 31125, this pair ranks #1,734,300 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Than vs thing
Shared letters: hnt. Private to "Than": a. Private to "thing": gi.
"Than" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "thing" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Than" for "thing" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Than" vs "thing" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Than" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "thing" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,734,300 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Than" and "thing" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "thing vs tine". 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 #1,734,300 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.