Tölz vs tom, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“Tölz” is a name and “tom” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#23,337
“Tölz” frequency rank: #2,521
“tom” frequency rank: 25858
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	Tölz	tom
Definition	Bad Tölz; eine Stadt in Bayern, Deutschland	ohne Inhalt; leer

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Tölz and tom apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch

Tölz

3 ch

tom

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Tölz is [ˈtœlt͡s] while tom is [tum]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (name vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25858, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Tölz is recorded at frequency rank #23,337, classified as aname, pronounced [ˈtœlt͡s]. tom is at rank #2,521, tagged as anadj, pronounced [tum].

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 25858, this pair ranks #1,826,956 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Tölz vs tom

Shared letters: t. Private to "Tölz": lzö. Private to "tom": mo.

"Tölz" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "tom" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

Tölz#23,337

tom#2,521

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Tölz" and "tom" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Tölz" is a name and "tom" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "Tölz" or "tom"?

"tom" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,521 in our German list, against #23,337 for "Tölz". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Tölz vs tom

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a name, it's “Tölz”; for an adjective, it's “tom”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Tölz” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable