FarbstoffvsFarbstoffeConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#38,733
“Farbstoff” frequency rank
#36,927
“Farbstoffe” frequency rank
75660
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Farbstoff Farbstoffe
Definition chemische Verbindung, die benutzt wird, um andere Materialien zu färben Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Farbstoff

Where the eye mixes Farbstoff and Farbstoffe

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.

9 ch
Farbstoff
10 ch
Farbstoffe

Visual trap between Farbstoff and Farbstoffe

A purely visual mix-up. Farbstoff ([ˈfaʁpˌʃtɔf]) and Farbstoffe ([ˈfaʁpˌʃtɔfə]) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “Farbstoff” sits inside “Farbstoffe”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 75660, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Farbstoff is recorded at frequency rank #38,733, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfaʁpˌʃtɔf]. Farbstoffe is at rank #36,927, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfaʁpˌʃtɔfə].

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 75660, this pair ranks #302,452 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Farbstoff vs Farbstoffe

Shared letters: abforst. Private to "Farbstoff": -. Private to "Farbstoffe": e.

"Farbstoff" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCCVCC  ·  "Farbstoffe" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Farbstoffafrbstoff · fabrstoff · farbbstoff · farbsotff · farbsstoff · farbstfof · farbstof · farbsttoff
  • Farbstoffeafrbstoffe · fabrstoffe · farbbstoffe · farbsotffe · farbsstoffe · farbstfofe · farbstofe · farbstofef

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Farbstoff" and "Farbstoffe" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfaʁpˌʃtɔf] versus [ˈfaʁpˌʃtɔfə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Farbstoff" vs "Farbstoffe" - which ranks higher?
"Farbstoffe" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #36,927 in our German list, against #38,733 for "Farbstoff". 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 "Farbstoff" and "Farbstoffe" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Farbstoff" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Farbstoffe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #302,452 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 #302,452 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