Which to use
“alten” is an adjective and “Augen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #416
- “alten” frequency rank
- #472
- “Augen” frequency rank
- 888
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | alten | Augen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs alt | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Auge |
Where the eye mixes alten and Augen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: alten is [ˈaltn̩] while Augen is [ˈaʊ̯ɡn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 888, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
alten is recorded at frequency rank #416, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaltn̩]. Augen is at rank #472, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯ɡn̩].
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 888, this pair ranks #2,005,202 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of alten vs Augen
Shared letters: aen. Private to "alten": lt. Private to "Augen": gu.
"alten" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "Augen" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "alten" and "Augen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "alten" or "Augen"?
What to do next
You've compared "alten" and "Augen". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "alten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Augen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,005,202 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "alten" and "Augen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ages vs Augen". 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
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.