DateivsDiätenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#5,814
“Datei” frequency rank
#21,218
“Diäten” frequency rank
27032
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Datei Diäten
Definition auf einem Datenträger gespeicherte und durch einen Namen identifizierte Daten Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Diät

Where the eye mixes Datei and Diäten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
Datei
6 ch
Diäten

Visual trap between Datei and Diäten

A purely visual mix-up. Datei ([daˈtaɪ̯]) and Diäten ([diˈɛːtn̩]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27032, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Datei is recorded at frequency rank #5,814, classified as anoun, pronounced [daˈtaɪ̯]. Diäten is at rank #21,218, tagged as anoun, pronounced [diˈɛːtn̩].

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 27032, this pair ranks #1,808,402 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Datei vs Diäten

Shared letters: deit. Private to "Datei": a. Private to "Diäten": .

"Datei" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "Diäten" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Dateiadtei · daeti · datie · dattei · ddatei · dtaei

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Datei" for "Diäten" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([daˈtaɪ̯] versus [diˈɛːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Datei" or "Diäten" show up more?
"Datei" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,814 in our German list, against #21,218 for "Diäten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "Datei" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Diäten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,808,402 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Datei" and "Diäten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Diäten vs duften". 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 #1,808,402 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