Which to use
“gelten” is a verb and “Geltung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,353
- “gelten” frequency rank
- #11,437
- “Geltung” frequency rank
- 12790
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gelten | Geltung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | gültig, verbindlich sein | Eigenschaft, anerkannt zu werden |
Where the eye mixes gelten and Geltung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. gelten runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against Geltung's 7 (CVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses gelten with Geltung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: gelten is [ˈɡɛltn̩] while Geltung is [ˈɡɛltʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12790, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gelten is recorded at frequency rank #1,353, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈɡɛltn̩]. Geltung is at rank #11,437, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡɛltʊŋ].
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 12790, this pair ranks #1,962,030 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gelten vs Geltung
Shared letters: eglnt. Private to "gelten": -. Private to "Geltung": u.
"gelten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Geltung" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gelten" and "Geltung" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "gelten" or "Geltung" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "gelten" and "Geltung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "gelten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Geltung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,962,030 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gelten" and "Geltung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gelten 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 #1,962,030 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.