DekadevsDekadenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#27,675
“Dekade” frequency rank
#45,210
“Dekaden” frequency rank
72885
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Dekade Dekaden
Definition Einheit von Zehn, Menge von Zehn Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Dekade

Where the eye mixes Dekade and Dekaden

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Dekade runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against Dekaden's 7 (CVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Dekade
7 ch
Dekaden

Why the eye confuses Dekade with Dekaden

A purely visual mix-up. Dekade ([deˈkaːdə]) and Dekaden ([deˈkaːdn̩]) 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) - “Dekade” sits inside “Dekaden”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72885, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Dekade is recorded at frequency rank #27,675, classified as anoun, pronounced [deˈkaːdə]. Dekaden is at rank #45,210, tagged as anoun, pronounced [deˈkaːdn̩].

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 72885, this pair ranks #375,807 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Dekade vs Dekaden

Shared letters: adek. Private to "Dekade": -. Private to "Dekaden": n.

"Dekade" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "Dekaden" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Dekade ← ddekade · deakde · dekadde · dekaed · dekdae · dekkade · dkeade · edkade
  • Dekaden ← ddekaden · deakden · dekadden · dekadenn · dekadne · dekaedn · dekdaen · dekkaden

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Dekade" and "Dekaden" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([deˈkaːdə] versus [deˈkaːdn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Dekade" or "Dekaden"?
"Dekade" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,675 in our German list, against #45,210 for "Dekaden". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "Dekade" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Dekaden" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #375,807 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Dekade" and "Dekaden" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Dekaden vs Dukaten". 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 #375,807 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