Which to use
“echten” and “elften” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,539
- “echten” frequency rank
- #18,868
- “elften” frequency rank
- 21407
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | echten | elften |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs echt | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs elfte |
Where the eye mixes echten and elften
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses echten with elften
A purely visual mix-up. echten ([ˈɛçtn̩]) and elften ([ˈɛlftn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21407, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
echten is recorded at frequency rank #2,539, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛçtn̩]. elften is at rank #18,868, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛlftn̩].
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 21407, this pair ranks #1,886,631 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of echten vs elften
Shared letters: ent. Private to "echten": ch. Private to "elften": fl.
"echten" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC · "elften" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "echten" and "elften" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "echten" or "elften"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "echten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "elften" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,886,631 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "echten" and "elften" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "elften vs Exoten". 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 #1,886,631 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.