gesamtenvsgespaltenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#1,354
“gesamten” frequency rank
#13,846
“gespalten” frequency rank
15200
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gesamten gespalten
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs gesamt durch Spaltung in zwei oder mehrere Teile geteilt

Where the eye mixes gesamten and gespalten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. gesamten runs 8 letters (CVCVCCVC) against gespalten's 9 (CVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
gesamten
9 ch
gespalten

Visual trap between gesamten and gespalten

A purely visual mix-up. gesamten ([ɡəˈzamtn̩]) and gespalten ([ɡəˈʃpaltn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15200, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gesamten is recorded at frequency rank #1,354, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈzamtn̩]. gespalten is at rank #13,846, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈʃpaltn̩].

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 15200, this pair ranks #1,945,649 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of gesamten vs gespalten

Shared letters: aegnst. Private to "gesamten": m. Private to "gespalten": lp.

"gesamten" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "gespalten" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gesamtenegsamten · geasmten · gesametn · gesammten · gesamtenn · gesamtne · gesamtten · gesatmen
  • gespaltenegspalten · gepsalten · gesaplten · gespaletn · gespallten · gespaltenn · gespaltne · gespaltten

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gesamten" and "gespalten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈzamtn̩] versus [ɡəˈʃpaltn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "gesamten" or "gespalten"?
"gesamten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,354 in our German list, against #13,846 for "gespalten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "gesamten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gespalten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,945,649 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "gesamten" and "gespalten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gespalten vs gestalte". 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 #1,945,649 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