Which to use
“breit” is an adjective and “breiten” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,332
- “breit” frequency rank
- #3,429
- “breiten” frequency rank
- 5761
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | breit | breiten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | horizontal seitlich ausgedehnt (in Links-Rechts-Richtung) | etwas Zusammengelegtes, das wenig Platz einnimmt, auseinandernehmen und mehr Platz einnehmen lassen |
Where the eye mixes breit and breiten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses breit with breiten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: breit is [bʁaɪ̯t] while breiten is [ˈbʁaɪ̯tn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “breit” sits inside “breiten”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5761, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
breit is recorded at frequency rank #2,332, classified as anadj, pronounced [bʁaɪ̯t]. breiten is at rank #3,429, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbʁaɪ̯tn̩].
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 5761, this pair ranks #1,993,806 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of breit vs breiten
Shared letters: beirt. Private to "breit": -. Private to "breiten": n.
"breit" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC · "breiten" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "breit" and "breiten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "breit" or "breiten"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "breit" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "breiten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,993,806 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "breit" and "breiten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "breit vs Brenz". 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 #1,993,806 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.