einemvseinerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“einem” and “einer” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#57
“einem” frequency rank
#51
“einer” frequency rank
108
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature einem einer
Definition [1] Dativ Singular Maskulinum des unbestimmten Artikels ein [1] Genitiv Singular Femininum des unbestimmten Artikels ein

Where the eye mixes einem and einer

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

5 ch
einem
5 ch
einer

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. einem ([ˈaɪ̯nəm]) and einer ([ˈaɪ̯nɐ]) 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 a single letter - m in “einem” becomes r in “einer”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 108, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

einem is recorded at frequency rank #57, classified as adet, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nəm]. einer is at rank #51, tagged as adet, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nɐ].

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 108, this pair ranks #2,006,268 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of einem vs einer

Shared letters: ein. Private to "einem": m. Private to "einer": r.

"einem" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC  ·  "einer" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • einemeienm · einemm · einme · einnem · eniem · ienem
  • einereienr · einerr · einner · einre · enier · iener

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "einem" and "einer" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaɪ̯nəm] versus [ˈaɪ̯nɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "einem" or "einer"?
"einer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #51 in our German list, against #57 for "einem". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list