Which to use
“eigen” is an adjective and “eigne” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,852
- “eigen” frequency rank
- #42,443
- “eigne” frequency rank
- 51295
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eigen | eigne |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem oder etwas zugehörig, jemandem selbst gehörend | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs eignen |
Where the eye mixes eigen and eigne
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between eigen and eigne
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: eigen is [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩] while eigne is [ˈaɪ̯ɡnə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ only by swapping two adjacent letters (en ↔ ne) - a transposition the eye reads straight past, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51295, 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]. eigne is at rank #42,443, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡnə].
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 51295, this pair ranks #1,140,943 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of eigen vs eigne
Shared letters: egin. Private to "eigen": -. Private to "eigne": -.
"eigen" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC · "eigne" · 5 letters · shape VVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "eigen" and "eigne" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "eigen" or "eigne"?
After this comparison
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 "eigne" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,140,943 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eigen" and "eigne" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eigne vs eignete". 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 #1,140,943 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.