Which to use
“Einkauf” is a noun and “einkaufen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,036
- “Einkauf” frequency rank
- #3,722
- “einkaufen” frequency rank
- 10758
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Einkauf | einkaufen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | das Erwerben von etwas gegen Geld | Gegenstände des täglichen Bedarfs erwerben |
Where the eye mixes Einkauf and einkaufen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Einkauf runs 7 letters (VVCCVVC) against einkaufen's 9 (VVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Einkauf with einkaufen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Einkauf is [ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯f] while einkaufen is [ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯fn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “Einkauf” sits inside “einkaufen”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10758, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Einkauf is recorded at frequency rank #7,036, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯f]. einkaufen is at rank #3,722, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯fn̩].
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 10758, this pair ranks #1,973,470 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Einkauf vs einkaufen
Shared letters: aefiknu. Private to "Einkauf": -. Private to "einkaufen": -.
"Einkauf" · 7 letters · shape VVCCVVC · "einkaufen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Einkauf" and "einkaufen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "Einkauf" or "einkaufen"?
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 "Einkauf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "einkaufen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,973,470 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Einkauf" and "einkaufen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Einkauf vs einkauft". 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 #1,973,470 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.