GalgenvsGassenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#25,558
“Galgen” frequency rank
#15,632
“Gassen” frequency rank
41190
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Galgen Gassen
Definition Vorrichtung zum Vollzug der Todesstrafe durch Erhängen Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Gasse

Where the eye mixes Galgen and Gassen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Galgen and Gassen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

6 ch
Galgen
6 ch
Gassen

Look-alike desk: Galgen vs Gassen

A purely visual mix-up. Galgen ([ˈɡalɡn̩]) and Gassen ([ˈɡasn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41190, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Galgen is recorded at frequency rank #25,558, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡalɡn̩]. Gassen is at rank #15,632, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡasn̩].

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 41190, this pair ranks #1,486,730 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Galgen vs Gassen

Shared letters: aegn. Private to "Galgen": l. Private to "Gassen": s.

"Galgen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "Gassen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Galgen ← aglgen · gaglen · galegn · galgenn · galggen · galgne · gallgen · ggalgen
  • Gassen ← agssen · gasesn · gassenn · gassne · gaßen · ggassen · gsasen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Galgen" and "Gassen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɡalɡn̩] versus [ˈɡasn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Galgen" or "Gassen"?
"Gassen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,632 in our German list, against #25,558 for "Galgen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Galgen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Gassen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,486,730 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Galgen" and "Gassen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Galgen vs Gilden". 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 #1,486,730 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