BedürfnissevsBedürfnissenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#5,343
“Bedürfnisse” frequency rank
#11,388
“Bedürfnissen” frequency rank
16731
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Bedürfnisse Bedürfnissen
Definition Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Bedürfnis Dativ Plural des Substantivs Bedürfnis

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Bedürfnisse and Bedürfnissen apart are highlighted. They share 11 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

11 ch
Bedürfnisse
12 ch
Bedürfnissen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Bedürfnisse ([bəˈdʏʁfnɪsə]) and Bedürfnissen ([bəˈdʏʁfnɪsn̩]) 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) - “Bedürfnisse” sits inside “Bedürfnissen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16731, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Bedürfnisse is recorded at frequency rank #5,343, classified as anoun, pronounced [bəˈdʏʁfnɪsə]. Bedürfnissen is at rank #11,388, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈdʏʁfnɪsn̩].

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 16731, this pair ranks #1,933,433 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Bedürfnisse vs Bedürfnissen

Shared letters: bdefinrsü. Private to "Bedürfnisse": -. Private to "Bedürfnissen": -.

"Bedürfnisse" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCCCVCCV  ·  "Bedürfnissen" · 12 letters · shape CVCVCCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

Bedürfnisse#5,343
Bedürfnissen#11,388

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Bedürfnisse" and "Bedürfnissen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈdʏʁfnɪsə] versus [bəˈdʏʁfnɪsn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Bedürfnisse" or "Bedürfnissen"?
"Bedürfnisse" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,343 in our German list, against #11,388 for "Bedürfnissen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Bedürfnisse vs Bedürfnissen

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 “Bedürfnisse” 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