ArbeitskraftvsArbeitskräftenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#16,631
“Arbeitskraft” frequency rank
#26,753
“Arbeitskräften” frequency rank
43384
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Arbeitskraft Arbeitskräften
Definition (körperliche) Arbeit leistender Mensch Dativ Plural des Substantivs Arbeitskraft

Where the eye mixes Arbeitskraft and Arbeitskräften

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. Arbeitskraft runs 12 letters (VCCVVCCCCVCC) against Arbeitskräften's 14 (VCCVVCCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

12 ch
Arbeitskraft
14 ch
Arbeitskräften

Why the eye confuses Arbeitskraft with Arbeitskräften

A purely visual mix-up. Arbeitskraft ([ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡sˌkʁaft]) and Arbeitskräften ([ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡sˌkʁɛftn̩]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43384, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Arbeitskraft is recorded at frequency rank #16,631, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡sˌkʁaft]. Arbeitskräften is at rank #26,753, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡sˌkʁɛftn̩].

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 43384, this pair ranks #1,419,811 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Arbeitskraft vs Arbeitskräften

Shared letters: abefikrst. Private to "Arbeitskraft": -. Private to "Arbeitskräften": nä.

"Arbeitskraft" · 12 letters · shape VCCVVCCCCVCC  ·  "Arbeitskräften" · 14 letters · shape VCCVVCCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Arbeitskraft ← abreitskraft · arbbeitskraft · arbeistkraft · arbeitksraft · arbeitskarft · arbeitskkraft · arbeitskrafft · arbeitskraftt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Arbeitskraft" and "Arbeitskräften" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡sˌkʁaft] versus [ˈaʁbaɪ̯t͡sˌkʁɛftn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Arbeitskraft" or "Arbeitskräften" show up more?
"Arbeitskraft" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,631 in our German list, against #26,753 for "Arbeitskräften". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Arbeitskraft" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Arbeitskräften" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,419,811 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Arbeitskraft" and "Arbeitskräften" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Arbeitskräfte vs Arbeitskräften". 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 #1,419,811 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list