Which to use
“genügen” is a verb and “genügend” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,479
- “genügen” frequency rank
- #2,767
- “genügend” frequency rank
- 13246
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | genügen | genügend |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | für einen bestimmten Zweck in ausreichendem Maß zur Verfügung stehen | von zufriedenstellender Menge oder Qualität |
Where the eye mixes genügen and genügend
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. genügen runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against genügend's 8 (CVCVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses genügen with genügend
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: genügen is [ɡəˈnyːɡn̩] while genügend is [ɡəˈnyːɡn̩t]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “genügen” sits inside “genügend”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13246, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
genügen is recorded at frequency rank #10,479, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈnyːɡn̩]. genügend is at rank #2,767, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈnyːɡn̩t].
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 13246, this pair ranks #1,959,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of genügen vs genügend
Shared letters: egnü. Private to "genügen": -. Private to "genügend": d.
"genügen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "genügend" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "genügen" and "genügend" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "genügen" or "genügend" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "genügen" and "genügend" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "genügen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "genügend" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,959,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "genügen" and "genügend" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "genügen vs gerungen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,959,168 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.