TönevsTourWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,865
“Töne” frequency rank
#1,574
“Tour” frequency rank
8439
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Töne Tour
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Ton Reise, Weg oder Bewegung mit in der Regel identischem Ausgangs- und Zielort

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
Töne
4 ch
Tour

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Töne ([ˈtøːnə]) and Tour ([tuːɐ̯]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8439, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Töne is recorded at frequency rank #6,865, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈtøːnə]. Tour is at rank #1,574, tagged as anoun, pronounced [tuːɐ̯].

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 8439, this pair ranks #1,984,270 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Töne vs Tour

Shared letters: t. Private to "Töne": enö. Private to "Tour": oru.

"Töne" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "Tour" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Tourotur · toru · tourr · ttour · tuor

Frequency comparison

Töne#6,865
Tour#1,574

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Töne" and "Tour" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈtøːnə] versus [tuːɐ̯]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Töne" or "Tour"?
"Tour" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,574 in our German list, against #6,865 for "Töne". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Töne vs Tour

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 “Töne” 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