ZöllevszollenWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#23,388
“Zölle” frequency rank
#30,883
“zollen” frequency rank
54271
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Zölle zollen
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Zoll etwas erweisen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Zölle and zollen apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Zölle
6 ch
zollen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Zölle is [ˈt͡sœlə] while zollen is [ˈt͡sɔlən]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54271, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Zölle is recorded at frequency rank #23,388, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈt͡sœlə]. zollen is at rank #30,883, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡sɔlən].

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 54271, this pair ranks #1,025,304 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Zölle vs zollen

Shared letters: elz. Private to "Zölle": ö. Private to "zollen": no.

"Zölle" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "zollen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • zollenozllen · zlolen · zoleln · zolen · zollenn · zollne · zzollen

Frequency comparison

Zölle#23,388
zollen#30,883

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Zölle" and "zollen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Zölle" is a noun and "zollen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Zölle" or "zollen"?
"Zölle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,388 in our German list, against #30,883 for "zollen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Zölle vs zollen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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