durchsetzenvsdurchsetztenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: durchsetzen is a verb, durchsetzten is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“durchsetzen” is a verb and “durchsetzten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#4,338
“durchsetzen” frequency rank
#37,463
“durchsetzten” frequency rank
41801
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature durchsetzen durchsetzten
Definition etwas, das man anstrebt, trotz eventueller Hindernisse verwirklichen Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs durchsetzt

Where the eye mixes durchsetzen and durchsetzten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. durchsetzen runs 11 letters (CVCCCCVCCVC) against durchsetzten's 12 (CVCCCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

11 ch
durchsetzen
12 ch
durchsetzten

Look-alike desk: durchsetzen vs durchsetzten

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: durchsetzen is [ˈdʊʁçˌzɛt͡sn̩] while durchsetzten is [dʊʁçˈzɛt͡stn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41801, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

durchsetzen is recorded at frequency rank #4,338, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈdʊʁçˌzɛt͡sn̩]. durchsetzten is at rank #37,463, tagged as anadj, pronounced [dʊʁçˈzɛt͡stn̩].

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 41801, this pair ranks #1,468,662 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of durchsetzen vs durchsetzten

Shared letters: cdehnrstuz. Private to "durchsetzen": -. Private to "durchsetzten": -.

"durchsetzen" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCCVCCVC  ·  "durchsetzten" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCCVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • durchsetzen ← ddurchsetzen · druchsetzen · ducrhsetzen · durcchsetzen · durchestzen · durchhsetzen · durchsetezn · durchsettzen
  • durchsetzten ← ddurchsetzten · druchsetzten · ducrhsetzten · durcchsetzten · durchestzten · durchhsetzten · durchsettzten · durchsetzetn

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "durchsetzen" for "durchsetzten" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "durchsetzen" is a verb and "durchsetzten" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "durchsetzen" or "durchsetzten"?
"durchsetzen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,338 in our German list, against #37,463 for "durchsetzten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "durchsetzen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "durchsetzten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,468,662 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "durchsetzen" and "durchsetzten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "durchsetzte vs durchsetzten". 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 #1,468,662 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