GattenvsGlätteWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#18,552
“Gatten” frequency rank
#43,226
“Glätte” frequency rank
61778
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Gatten Glätte
Definition Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Gatte ebenmäßige Beschaffenheit, das Nichtvorhandensein von Unebenheiten

Where the eye mixes Gatten and Glätte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
Gatten
6 ch
Glätte

Why the eye confuses Gatten with Glätte

A purely visual mix-up. Gatten ([ˈɡatn̩]) and Glätte ([ˈɡlɛtə]) 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 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61778, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Gatten is recorded at frequency rank #18,552, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡatn̩]. Glätte is at rank #43,226, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡlɛtə].

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 61778, this pair ranks #737,061 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Gatten vs Glätte

Shared letters: egt. Private to "Gatten": an. Private to "Glätte": .

"Gatten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "Glätte" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Gattenagtten · gaten · gatetn · gattenn · gattne · ggatten · gtaten

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Gatten" and "Glätte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɡatn̩] versus [ˈɡlɛtə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Gatten" vs "Glätte" - which ranks higher?
"Gatten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,552 in our German list, against #43,226 for "Glätte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Gatten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Glätte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #737,061 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Gatten" and "Glätte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Glätte vs Glatteis". 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 #737,061 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