Which to use
“eigen” and “eigenem” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,852
- “eigen” frequency rank
- #5,475
- “eigenem” frequency rank
- 14327
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eigen | eigenem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem oder etwas zugehörig, jemandem selbst gehörend | Dativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs eigen |
Where the eye mixes eigen and eigenem
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses eigen with eigenem
A purely visual mix-up. eigen ([ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩]) and eigenem ([ˈaɪ̯ɡənəm]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “eigen” sits inside “eigenem”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14327, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
eigen is recorded at frequency rank #8,852, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩]. eigenem is at rank #5,475, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡənəm].
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 14327, this pair ranks #1,951,965 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of eigen vs eigenem
Shared letters: egin. Private to "eigen": -. Private to "eigenem": m.
"eigen" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC · "eigenem" · 7 letters · shape VVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "eigen" and "eigenem" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "eigen" or "eigenem" show up more?
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 "eigen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "eigenem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,951,965 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eigen" and "eigenem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eigen vs Eupen". 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 #1,951,965 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.