dünnemvsdünnenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#42,439
“dünnem” frequency rank
#11,414
“dünnen” frequency rank
53853
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dünnem dünnen
Definition Dativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs dünn Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs dünn

Where the eye mixes dünnem and dünnen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

6 ch
dünnem
6 ch
dünnen

Visual trap between dünnem and dünnen

A purely visual mix-up. dünnem ([ˈdʏnəm]) and dünnen ([ˈdʏnən]) 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 a single letter - m in “dünnem” becomes n in “dünnen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53853, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dünnem is recorded at frequency rank #42,439, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈdʏnəm]. dünnen is at rank #11,414, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈdʏnən].

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 53853, this pair ranks #1,041,792 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of dünnem vs dünnen

Shared letters: denü. Private to "dünnem": m. Private to "dünnen": -.

"dünnem" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "dünnen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "dünnem" for "dünnen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈdʏnəm] versus [ˈdʏnən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "dünnem" vs "dünnen" - which ranks higher?
"dünnen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,414 in our German list, against #42,439 for "dünnem". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "dünnem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "dünnen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,041,792 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "dünnem" and "dünnen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Düne vs dünnem". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,041,792 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