Which to use
“den” is an unknown and “der” is a determiner - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10
- “den” frequency rank
- #2
- “der” frequency rank
- 12
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | den | der |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Akkusativ Singular Maskulinum des bestimmten Artikels der | definiter Artikel (bestimmtes Geschlechtswort) |
Where the eye mixes den and der
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between den and der
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: den is [deːn] while der is [deːɐ̯]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - n in “den” becomes r in “der”, and the parts of speech differ too (unknown vs determiner), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
den is recorded at frequency rank #10, classified as anunknown, pronounced [deːn]. der is at rank #2, tagged as adet, pronounced [deːɐ̯].
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 12, this pair ranks #2,006,355 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of den vs der
Shared letters: de. Private to "den": n. Private to "der": r.
"den" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "der" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "den" and "der" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "den" or "der"?
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 "den" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "der" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,006,355 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "den" and "der" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "der vs dörr". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #2,006,355 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.