FremdwortvsFremdwörterWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#34,664
“Fremdwort” frequency rank
#44,619
“Fremdwörter” frequency rank
79283
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Fremdwort Fremdwörter
Definition ein aus einer anderen Sprache übernommener Ausdruck, der im Gegensatz zu einem Lehnwort in Schreibweise, Lautung und Grammatik nicht oder nur wenig von der Originalsprache abweicht. Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Fremdwort

Where the eye mixes Fremdwort and Fremdwörter

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Fremdwort runs 9 letters (CCVCCCVCC) against Fremdwörter's 11 (CCVCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
Fremdwort
11 ch
Fremdwörter

Why the eye confuses Fremdwort with Fremdwörter

A purely visual mix-up. Fremdwort ([ˈfʁɛmtˌvɔʁt]) and Fremdwörter ([ˈfʁɛmtˌvœʁtɐ]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79283, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Fremdwort is recorded at frequency rank #34,664, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʁɛmtˌvɔʁt]. Fremdwörter is at rank #44,619, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʁɛmtˌvœʁtɐ].

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 79283, this pair ranks #219,811 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Fremdwort vs Fremdwörter

Shared letters: defmrtw. Private to "Fremdwort": o. Private to "Fremdwörter": ö.

"Fremdwort" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCCVCC  ·  "Fremdwörter" · 11 letters · shape CCVCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Fremdwort ← fermdwort · ffremdwort · fredmwort · fremddwort · fremdowrt · fremdworrt · fremdwortt · fremdwotr

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Fremdwort" and "Fremdwörter" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfʁɛmtˌvɔʁt] versus [ˈfʁɛmtˌvœʁtɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Fremdwort" or "Fremdwörter" show up more?
"Fremdwort" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #34,664 in our German list, against #44,619 for "Fremdwörter". 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 "Fremdwort" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Fremdwörter" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #219,811 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Fremdwort" and "Fremdwörter" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Fremdkörper vs Fremdwörter". 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 #219,811 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