Which to use
“geltend” is a verb and “Geltung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,181
- “geltend” frequency rank
- #11,437
- “Geltung” frequency rank
- 18618
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | geltend | Geltung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Präsens des Verbs gelten | Eigenschaft, anerkannt zu werden |
Where the eye mixes geltend and Geltung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. geltend and Geltung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: geltend vs Geltung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: geltend is [ˈɡɛltn̩t] while Geltung is [ˈɡɛltʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18618, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
geltend is recorded at frequency rank #7,181, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈɡɛltn̩t]. 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 18618, this pair ranks #1,916,537 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of geltend vs Geltung
Shared letters: eglnt. Private to "geltend": d. Private to "Geltung": u.
"geltend" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "Geltung" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "geltend" and "Geltung" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "geltend" or "Geltung" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "geltend" 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 #1,916,537 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "geltend" and "Geltung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "geltend vs geltendem". 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 #1,916,537 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.