einzigvseinzigenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#2,953
“einzig” frequency rank
#1,765
“einzigen” frequency rank
4718
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature einzig einzigen
Definition nur einmal vorhanden Genitiv Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs einzig

Where the eye mixes einzig and einzigen

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

6 ch
einzig
8 ch
einzigen

Visual trap between einzig and einzigen

A purely visual mix-up. einzig ([ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪç]) and einzigen ([ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡŋ̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “einzig” sits inside “einzigen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4718, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

einzig is recorded at frequency rank #2,953, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪç]. einzigen is at rank #1,765, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡŋ̩].

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 4718, this pair ranks #1,996,875 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of einzig vs einzigen

Shared letters: eginz. Private to "einzig": -. Private to "einzigen": -.

"einzig" · 6 letters · shape VVCCVC  ·  "einzigen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • einzigeinizg · einnzig · einzgi · einzigg · einzzig · eiznig · enizig · ienzig
  • einzigeneinizgen · einnzigen · einzgien · einziegn · einzigenn · einziggen · einzigne · einzzigen

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "einzig" for "einzigen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪç] versus [ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡŋ̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "einzig" or "einzigen"?
"einzigen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,765 in our German list, against #2,953 for "einzig". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "einzig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "einzigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,996,875 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "einzig" and "einzigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "einzig vs einzog". 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 #1,996,875 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