AusnahmevsAusnahmenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#2,285
“Ausnahme” frequency rank
#4,492
“Ausnahmen” frequency rank
6777
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Ausnahme Ausnahmen
Definition Abweichung von einer Regel Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Ausnahme

Where the eye mixes Ausnahme and Ausnahmen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Ausnahme runs 8 letters (VVCCVCCV) against Ausnahmen's 9 (VVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
Ausnahme
9 ch
Ausnahmen

Look-alike desk: Ausnahme vs Ausnahmen

A purely visual mix-up. Ausnahme ([ˈaʊ̯sˌnaːmə]) and Ausnahmen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌnaːmən]) 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) - “Ausnahme” sits inside “Ausnahmen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6777, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Ausnahme is recorded at frequency rank #2,285, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌnaːmə]. Ausnahmen is at rank #4,492, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌnaːmən].

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 6777, this pair ranks #1,990,480 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Ausnahme vs Ausnahmen

Shared letters: aehmnsu. Private to "Ausnahme": -. Private to "Ausnahmen": -.

"Ausnahme" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCCV  ·  "Ausnahmen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Ausnahme ← asunahme · aunsahme · ausanhme · ausnahem · ausnahhme · ausnahmme · ausnamhe · ausnhame
  • Ausnahmen ← asunahmen · aunsahmen · ausanhmen · ausnahemn · ausnahhmen · ausnahmenn · ausnahmmen · ausnahmne

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Ausnahme" and "Ausnahmen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯sˌnaːmə] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌnaːmən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Ausnahme" vs "Ausnahmen" - which ranks higher?
"Ausnahme" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,285 in our German list, against #4,492 for "Ausnahmen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Ausnahme" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Ausnahmen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,990,480 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Ausnahme" and "Ausnahmen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ausfahren vs Ausnahmen". 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 #1,990,480 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