Which to use
“dritte” is a num and “Drittel” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,155
- “dritte” frequency rank
- #2,952
- “Drittel” frequency rank
- 4107
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dritte | Drittel |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nach dem oder der zweiten kommend | einer von drei gleich großen Teilen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dritte and Drittel apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dritte is [ˈdʁɪtə] while Drittel is [ˈdʁɪtl̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “dritte” sits inside “Drittel”, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4107, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dritte is recorded at frequency rank #1,155, classified as anum, pronounced [ˈdʁɪtə]. Drittel is at rank #2,952, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈdʁɪtl̩].
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 4107, this pair ranks #1,998,568 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of dritte vs Drittel
Shared letters: deirt. Private to "dritte": -. Private to "Drittel": l.
"dritte" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV · "Drittel" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "dritte" and "Drittel" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "dritte" or "Drittel"?
Remembering dritte vs Drittel
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a num, it's “dritte”; for a noun, it's “Drittel”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dritte” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable