bittenvsblutenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#2,536
“bitten” frequency rank
#21,554
“bluten” frequency rank
24090
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bitten bluten
Definition jemanden in höflicher Form nach etwas fragen, sich in höflicher Form an jemanden wenden, jemanden um etwas ersuchen, einen Wunsch ausdrücken austreten von Blut aus Blutgefäßen

Where the eye mixes bitten and bluten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
bitten
6 ch
bluten

Why the eye confuses bitten with bluten

A purely visual mix-up. bitten ([ˈbɪtn̩]) and bluten ([ˈbluːtn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24090, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bitten is recorded at frequency rank #2,536, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbɪtn̩]. bluten is at rank #21,554, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbluːtn̩].

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 24090, this pair ranks #1,852,495 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of bitten vs bluten

Shared letters: bent. Private to "bitten": i. Private to "bluten": lu.

"bitten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "bluten" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bittenbbitten · biten · bitetn · bittenn · bittne · btiten · ibtten
  • blutenbbluten · blluten · bltuen · bluetn · blutenn · blutne · blutten · bulten

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "bitten" and "bluten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈbɪtn̩] versus [ˈbluːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "bitten" or "bluten"?
"bitten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,536 in our German list, against #21,554 for "bluten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "bitten" and "bluten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "bitten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "bluten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,852,495 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bitten" and "bluten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Blusen vs bluten". 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 #1,852,495 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