GesetzenvsGesetzesWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#7,326
“Gesetzen” frequency rank
#5,596
“Gesetzes” frequency rank
12922
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Gesetzen Gesetzes
Definition Dativ Plural des Substantivs Gesetz Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Gesetz

Where the eye mixes Gesetzen and Gesetzes

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Gesetzen and Gesetzes follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
Gesetzen
8 ch
Gesetzes

Look-alike desk: Gesetzen vs Gesetzes

A purely visual mix-up. Gesetzen ([ɡəˈzɛt͡sn̩]) and Gesetzes ([ɡəˈzɛt͡səs]) 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 a single letter - n in “Gesetzen” becomes s in “Gesetzes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12922, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Gesetzen is recorded at frequency rank #7,326, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɡəˈzɛt͡sn̩]. Gesetzes is at rank #5,596, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɡəˈzɛt͡səs].

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 12922, this pair ranks #1,961,201 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Gesetzen vs Gesetzes

Shared letters: egstz. Private to "Gesetzen": n. Private to "Gesetzes": -.

"Gesetzen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "Gesetzes" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Gesetzen ← egsetzen · geestzen · gesetezn · gesettzen · gesetzenn · gesetzne · gesetzzen · gesezten
  • Gesetzes ← egsetzes · geestzes · gesetezs · gesettzes · gesetzess · gesetzse · gesetzzes · geseztes

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Gesetzen" for "Gesetzes" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈzɛt͡sn̩] versus [ɡəˈzɛt͡səs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Gesetzen" or "Gesetzes"?
"Gesetzes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,596 in our German list, against #7,326 for "Gesetzen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Gesetzen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Gesetzes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,961,201 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Gesetzen" and "Gesetzes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Gemetzel vs Gesetzen". 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 #1,961,201 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