wähltvsWalWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: wählt is a verb, Wal is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“wählt” is a verb and “Wal” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#3,697
“wählt” frequency rank
#18,758
“Wal” frequency rank
22455
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature wählt Wal
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wählen oft sehr großes, im Wasser lebendes Säugetier (Ordnung Cetacea)

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set wählt and Wal apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
wählt
3 ch
Wal

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: wählt is [vɛːlt] while Wal is [vaːl]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22455, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

wählt is recorded at frequency rank #3,697, classified as averb, pronounced [vɛːlt]. Wal is at rank #18,758, tagged as anoun, pronounced [vaːl].

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 22455, this pair ranks #1,873,947 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of wählt vs Wal

Shared letters: lw. Private to "wählt": htä. Private to "Wal": a.

"wählt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC  ·  "Wal" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

wählt#3,697
Wal#18,758

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "wählt" and "Wal" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "wählt" is a verb and "Wal" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "wählt" or "Wal"?
"wählt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,697 in our German list, against #18,758 for "Wal". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering wählt vs Wal

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “wählt”; for a noun, it's “Wal”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “wählt” 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