Which to use
“eilen” is a verb and “eitel” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #25,518
- “eilen” frequency rank
- #23,907
- “eitel” frequency rank
- 49425
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eilen | eitel |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | schnell gehen, um ein Ziel möglichst schnell zu erreichen | voller Selbstverliebtheit, sich selbst bewundernd |
Where the eye mixes eilen and eitel
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses eilen with eitel
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: eilen is [ˈaɪ̯lən] while eitel is [ˈaɪ̯təl]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49425, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
eilen is recorded at frequency rank #25,518, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯lən]. eitel is at rank #23,907, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯təl].
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 49425, this pair ranks #1,212,011 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of eilen vs eitel
Shared letters: eil. Private to "eilen": n. Private to "eitel": t.
"eilen" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC · "eitel" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "eilen" for "eitel" ever safe?
Frequency check: "eilen" vs "eitel" - which ranks higher?
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 "eilen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "eitel" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,212,011 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eilen" and "eitel" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eilen 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 #1,212,011 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.