definierevsdefinierenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#32,473
“definiere” frequency rank
#7,588
“definieren” frequency rank
40061
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature definiere definieren
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs definieren bestimmen, festlegen

Where the eye mixes definiere and definieren

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. definiere runs 9 letters (CVCVCVVCV) against definieren's 10 (CVCVCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
definiere
10 ch
definieren

Visual trap between definiere and definieren

A purely visual mix-up. definiere ([defiˈniːʁə]) and definieren ([defiˈniːʁən]) 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) - “definiere” sits inside “definieren”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40061, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

definiere is recorded at frequency rank #32,473, classified as averb, pronounced [defiˈniːʁə]. definieren is at rank #7,588, tagged as averb, pronounced [defiˈniːʁən].

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 40061, this pair ranks #1,519,137 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of definiere vs definieren

Shared letters: definr. Private to "definiere": -. Private to "definieren": -.

"definiere" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVVCV  ·  "definieren" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • definiereddefiniere · deffiniere · defiinere · defineire · definieer · definierre · definiree · definniere
  • definierenddefinieren · deffinieren · defiineren · defineiren · definieern · definierenn · definierne · definierren

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "definiere" and "definieren" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([defiˈniːʁə] versus [defiˈniːʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "definiere" or "definieren"?
"definieren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,588 in our German list, against #32,473 for "definiere". 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 "definiere" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "definieren" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,519,137 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "definiere" and "definieren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "definiere vs definierte". 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 #1,519,137 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