einzigenvseinzigerWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#1,765
“einzigen” frequency rank
#3,433
“einziger” frequency rank
5198
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature einzigen einziger
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs einzig Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs einzig

Where the eye mixes einzigen and einziger

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

8 ch
einzigen
8 ch
einziger

Why the eye confuses einzigen with einziger

A purely visual mix-up. einzigen ([ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡŋ̩]) and einziger ([ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡɐ]) 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 - n in “einzigen” becomes r in “einziger”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5198, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

einzigen is recorded at frequency rank #1,765, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡŋ̩]. einziger is at rank #3,433, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡɐ].

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 5198, this pair ranks #1,995,512 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of einzigen vs einziger

Shared letters: eginz. Private to "einzigen": -. Private to "einziger": r.

"einzigen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC  ·  "einziger" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • einzigeneinizgen · einnzigen · einzgien · einziegn · einzigenn · einziggen · einzigne · einzzigen
  • einzigereinizger · einnziger · einzgier · einziegr · einzigerr · einzigger · einzigre · einzziger

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "einzigen" for "einziger" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡŋ̩] versus [ˈaɪ̯nt͡sɪɡɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "einzigen" or "einziger"?
"einzigen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,765 in our German list, against #3,433 for "einziger". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "einzigen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "einziger" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,995,512 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "einzigen" and "einziger" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "einzigen vs eisigen". 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 #1,995,512 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