elftenvsElitenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: elften is a adjective, Eliten is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“elften” is an adjective and “Eliten” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#18,868
“elften” frequency rank
#14,050
“Eliten” frequency rank
32918
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature elften Eliten
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs elfte Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Elite

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set elften and Eliten apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
elften
6 ch
Eliten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: elften is [ˈɛlftn̩] while Eliten is [eˈliːtn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - f in “elften” becomes i in “Eliten”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32918, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

elften is recorded at frequency rank #18,868, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛlftn̩]. Eliten is at rank #14,050, tagged as anoun, pronounced [eˈliːtn̩].

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 32918, this pair ranks #1,697,243 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of elften vs Eliten

Shared letters: elnt. Private to "elften": f. Private to "Eliten": i.

"elften" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC  ·  "Eliten" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • elfteneflten · elfetn · elfften · elftenn · elftne · elftten · ellften · eltfen
  • Elitenelietn · elitenn · elitne · elitten · elliten · eltien

Frequency comparison

elften#18,868
Eliten#14,050

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "elften" and "Eliten" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "elften" is an adjective and "Eliten" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "elften" or "Eliten"?
"Eliten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,050 in our German list, against #18,868 for "elften". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering elften vs Eliten

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “elften”; for a noun, it's “Eliten”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “elften” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list