EntwicklungvsEntwicklungenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#565
“Entwicklung” frequency rank
#4,423
“Entwicklungen” frequency rank
4988
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Entwicklung Entwicklungen
Definition Veränderung in einem zeitlichen Prozess Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Entwicklung

Where the eye mixes Entwicklung and Entwicklungen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence.

11 ch
Entwicklung
13 ch
Entwicklungen

Why the eye confuses Entwicklung with Entwicklungen

A purely visual mix-up. Entwicklung ([ɛntˈvɪklʊŋ]) and Entwicklungen ([ɛntˈvɪklʊŋən]) 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) - “Entwicklung” sits inside “Entwicklungen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4988, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Entwicklung is recorded at frequency rank #565, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛntˈvɪklʊŋ]. Entwicklungen is at rank #4,423, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛntˈvɪklʊŋən].

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 4988, this pair ranks #1,996,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Entwicklung vs Entwicklungen

Shared letters: cegiklntuw. Private to "Entwicklung": -. Private to "Entwicklungen": -.

"Entwicklung" · 11 letters · shape VCCCVCCCVCC  ·  "Entwicklungen" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Entwicklungenntwicklung · entiwcklung · enttwicklung · entwciklung · entwiccklung · entwickklung · entwickllung · entwicklnug
  • Entwicklungenenntwicklungen · entiwcklungen · enttwicklungen · entwciklungen · entwiccklungen · entwickklungen · entwickllungen · entwicklnugen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Entwicklung" and "Entwicklungen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛntˈvɪklʊŋ] versus [ɛntˈvɪklʊŋən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Entwicklung" or "Entwicklungen"?
"Entwicklung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #565 in our German list, against #4,423 for "Entwicklungen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "Entwicklung" and "Entwicklungen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Entwicklung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Entwicklungen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,996,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • 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 #1,996,109 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