ArbeitskollegevsArbeitskollegenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“Arbeitskollege” and “Arbeitskollegen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#49,473
“Arbeitskollege” frequency rank
#24,612
“Arbeitskollegen” frequency rank
74085
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Arbeitskollege Arbeitskollegen
Definition Person, mit der man gemeinsam arbeitet Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Arbeitskollege

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Arbeitskollege and Arbeitskollegen apart are highlighted. They share 14 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

14 ch
Arbeitskollege
15 ch
Arbeitskollegen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Arbeitskollege ([ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡skɔˌleːɡə]) and Arbeitskollegen ([ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡skɔˌleːɡn̩]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Arbeitskollege” sits inside “Arbeitskollegen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74085, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Arbeitskollege is recorded at frequency rank #49,473, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡skɔˌleːɡə]. Arbeitskollegen is at rank #24,612, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡skɔˌleːɡn̩].

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 74085, this pair ranks #342,820 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Arbeitskollege vs Arbeitskollegen

Shared letters: abegiklorst. Private to "Arbeitskollege": -. Private to "Arbeitskollegen": n.

"Arbeitskollege" · 14 letters · shape VCCVVCCCVCCVCV  ·  "Arbeitskollegen" · 15 letters · shape VCCVVCCCVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Arbeitskollegeabreitskollege · arbbeitskollege · arbeistkollege · arbeitksollege · arbeitskkollege · arbeitsklolege · arbeitskolege · arbeitskolelge
  • Arbeitskollegenabreitskollegen · arbbeitskollegen · arbeistkollegen · arbeitksollegen · arbeitskkollegen · arbeitsklolegen · arbeitskolegen · arbeitskolelgen

Frequency comparison

Arbeitskollege#49,473
Arbeitskollegen#24,612

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Arbeitskollege" and "Arbeitskollegen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡skɔˌleːɡə] versus [ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡skɔˌleːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Arbeitskollege" or "Arbeitskollegen"?
"Arbeitskollegen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,612 in our German list, against #49,473 for "Arbeitskollege". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Arbeitskollege vs Arbeitskollegen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Arbeitskollege” 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