eigenemvsEigentumWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: eigenem is a adjective, Eigentum is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“eigenem” is an adjective and “Eigentum” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,475
“eigenem” frequency rank
#4,033
“Eigentum” frequency rank
9508
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature eigenem Eigentum
Definition Dativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs eigen etwas jemandem Gehörendes

Where the eye mixes eigenem and Eigentum

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

7 ch
eigenem
8 ch
Eigentum

Look-alike desk: eigenem vs Eigentum

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: eigenem is [ˈaɪ̯ɡənəm] while Eigentum is [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tuːm]. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9508, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

eigenem is recorded at frequency rank #5,475, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡənəm]. Eigentum is at rank #4,033, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tuːm].

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 9508, this pair ranks #1,979,614 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of eigenem vs Eigentum

Shared letters: egimn. Private to "eigenem": -. Private to "Eigentum": tu.

"eigenem" · 7 letters · shape VVCVCVC  ·  "Eigentum" · 8 letters · shape VVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • eigenemegienem · eiegnem · eigeenm · eigenemm · eigenme · eigennem · eiggenem · eigneem
  • Eigentumegientum · eiegntum · eigenntum · eigentmu · eigenttum · eigentumm · eigenutm · eigetnum

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "eigenem" and "Eigentum" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "eigenem" is an adjective and "Eigentum" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "eigenem" or "Eigentum" show up more?
"Eigentum" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,033 in our German list, against #5,475 for "eigenem". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "eigenem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Eigentum" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,979,614 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "eigenem" and "Eigentum" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eigenem vs eigne". 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 #1,979,614 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