Which to use
“wilde” and “wise” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,668
- “wilde” frequency rank
- #35,561
- “wise” frequency rank
- 40229
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wilde | wise |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs wild | weise, klug |
Where the eye mixes wilde and wise
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. wilde runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against wise's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between wilde and wise
A purely visual mix-up. wilde ([ˈvɪldə]) and wise ([waɪz]) 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 40229, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wilde is recorded at frequency rank #4,668, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈvɪldə]. wise is at rank #35,561, tagged as anadj, pronounced [waɪz].
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 40229, this pair ranks #1,514,469 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of wilde vs wise
Shared letters: eiw. Private to "wilde": dl. Private to "wise": s.
"wilde" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "wise" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "wilde" for "wise" ever safe?
Frequency check: "wilde" vs "wise" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "wilde" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wise" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,514,469 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "wilde" and "wise" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "waste vs wise". 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 #1,514,469 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.