Which to use
“eichen” and “eigen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,129
- “eichen” frequency rank
- #8,852
- “eigen” frequency rank
- 24981
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eichen | eigen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aus Eichenholz bestehend oder gemacht | jemandem oder etwas zugehörig, jemandem selbst gehörend |
Where the eye mixes eichen and eigen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: eichen vs eigen
A purely visual mix-up. eichen ([ˈaɪ̯çn̩]) and eigen ([ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24981, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
eichen is recorded at frequency rank #16,129, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯çn̩]. eigen is at rank #8,852, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩].
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 24981, this pair ranks #1,839,837 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of eichen vs eigen
Shared letters: ein. Private to "eichen": ch. Private to "eigen": g.
"eichen" · 6 letters · shape VVCCVC · "eigen" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "eichen" for "eigen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "eichen" or "eigen"?
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 "eichen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "eigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,839,837 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eichen" and "eigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Eicheln vs eichen". 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 #1,839,837 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.