BehältervsBehälternWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#11,608
“Behälter” frequency rank
#43,750
“Behältern” frequency rank
55358
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Behälter Behältern
Definition Gefäß mit einem hinreichenden Innenvolumen zum Aufbewahren oder Transportieren fester, flüssiger oder gasförmiger Stoffe, das verschlossen werden kann Dativ Plural des Substantivs Behälter

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Behälter and Behältern apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
Behälter
9 ch
Behältern

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Behälter ([bəˈhɛltɐ]) and Behältern ([bəˈhɛltɐn]) 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) - “Behälter” sits inside “Behältern”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55358, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Behälter is recorded at frequency rank #11,608, classified as anoun, pronounced [bəˈhɛltɐ]. Behältern is at rank #43,750, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈhɛltɐn].

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 55358, this pair ranks #982,708 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Behälter vs Behältern

Shared letters: behlrtä. Private to "Behälter": -. Private to "Behältern": n.

"Behälter" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "Behältern" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Behälter" and "Behältern" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈhɛltɐ] versus [bəˈhɛltɐn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Behälter" or "Behältern"?
"Behälter" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,608 in our German list, against #43,750 for "Behältern". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list