Which to use
“Wald” and “waltz” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,342
- “Wald” frequency rank
- #35,544
- “waltz” frequency rank
- 36886
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Wald | waltz |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | größere von Bäumen dicht bewachsene Fläche | langsamer Gesellschaftstanz im Dreivierteltakt; English Waltz, langsamer Walzer |
Where the eye mixes Wald and waltz
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Wald runs 4 letters (CVCC) against waltz's 5 (CVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: Wald vs waltz
A purely visual mix-up. Wald ([valt]) and waltz ([valt͡s]) 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 36886, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Wald is recorded at frequency rank #1,342, classified as anoun, pronounced [valt]. waltz is at rank #35,544, tagged as anoun, pronounced [valt͡s].
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 36886, this pair ranks #1,604,238 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Wald vs waltz
Shared letters: alw. Private to "Wald": d. Private to "waltz": tz.
"Wald" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "waltz" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Wald" for "waltz" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Wald" or "waltz"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Wald" and "waltz" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Wald" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "waltz" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,604,238 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Wald" and "waltz" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "waltz vs waste". 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 #1,604,238 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.