dreifachvsdreifachenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: dreifach is a num, dreifachen is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“dreifach” is a num and “dreifachen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,862
“dreifach” frequency rank
#24,679
“dreifachen” frequency rank
40541
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dreifach dreifachen
Definition dreimal so oft oder so viel Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs dreifach

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dreifach and dreifachen apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
dreifach
10 ch
dreifachen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dreifach is [ˈdʁaɪ̯fax] while dreifachen is [ˈdʁaɪ̯faxn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “dreifach” sits inside “dreifachen”, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40541, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dreifach is recorded at frequency rank #15,862, classified as anum, pronounced [ˈdʁaɪ̯fax]. dreifachen is at rank #24,679, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈdʁaɪ̯faxn̩].

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 40541, this pair ranks #1,505,475 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of dreifach vs dreifachen

Shared letters: acdefhir. Private to "dreifach": -. Private to "dreifachen": n.

"dreifach" · 8 letters · shape CCVVCVCC  ·  "dreifachen" · 10 letters · shape CCVVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dreifachddreifach · derifach · drefiach · dreiafch · dreifacch · dreifachh · dreifahc · dreifcah
  • dreifachenddreifachen · derifachen · drefiachen · dreiafchen · dreifacchen · dreifacehn · dreifachenn · dreifachhen

Frequency comparison

dreifach#15,862
dreifachen#24,679

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dreifach" and "dreifachen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "dreifach" is a num and "dreifachen" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "dreifach" or "dreifachen"?
"dreifach" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,862 in our German list, against #24,679 for "dreifachen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering dreifach vs dreifachen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a num, it's “dreifach”; for an adjective, it's “dreifachen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dreifach” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list