Which to use
“tale” is a verb and “tape” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #49,971
- “tale” frequency rank
- #27,796
- “tape” frequency rank
- 77767
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tale | tape |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de talar o de talarse. | Persona aindiada, de color moreno, que conserva el tipo de los guaraníes que habitaban la reducción jesuítica de Santo Tomé Apóstol en las Misiones, a la cual se decía Provincia del Tapé. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tale and tape apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: tale is [ˈt̪ale] while tape is [ˈt̪ape]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - l in “tale” becomes p in “tape”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 77767, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tale is recorded at frequency rank #49,971, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈt̪ale]. tape is at rank #27,796, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt̪ape].
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 77767, this pair ranks #15,462 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of tale vs tape
Shared letters: aet. Private to "tale": l. Private to "tape": p.
"tale" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "tape" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tale" and "tape" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "tale" or "tape"?
Remembering tale vs tape
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “tale”; for a noun, it's “tape”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tale” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable