Which to use
“Bakterien” and “Batterien” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,895
- “Bakterien” frequency rank
- #9,332
- “Batterien” frequency rank
- 16227
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Bakterien | Batterien |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Bakterie | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Batterie |
Where the eye mixes Bakterien and Batterien
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Bakterien and Batterien follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCVVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: Bakterien vs Batterien
A purely visual mix-up. Bakterien ([bakˈteːʁiən]) and Batterien ([batəˈʁiːən]) 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 a single letter - k in “Bakterien” becomes t in “Batterien”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16227, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Bakterien is recorded at frequency rank #6,895, classified as anoun, pronounced [bakˈteːʁiən]. Batterien is at rank #9,332, tagged as anoun, pronounced [batəˈʁiːən].
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 16227, this pair ranks #1,937,545 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Bakterien vs Batterien
Shared letters: abeinrt. Private to "Bakterien": k. Private to "Batterien": -.
"Bakterien" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC · "Batterien" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Bakterien" for "Batterien" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Bakterien" or "Batterien" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Bakterien" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Batterien" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,937,545 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Bakterien" and "Batterien" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Bakterien vs Bakterium". 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 #1,937,545 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.