Which to use
“gewaltig” and “gewaltigen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,478
- “gewaltig” frequency rank
- #11,442
- “gewaltigen” frequency rank
- 18920
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gewaltig | gewaltigen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sehr groß oder sehr bedeutend | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs gewaltig |
Where the eye mixes gewaltig and gewaltigen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. gewaltig runs 8 letters (CVCVCCVC) against gewaltigen's 10 (CVCVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between gewaltig and gewaltigen
A purely visual mix-up. gewaltig ([ɡəˈvaltɪç]) and gewaltigen ([ɡəˈvaltɪɡn̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “gewaltig” sits inside “gewaltigen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18920, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gewaltig is recorded at frequency rank #7,478, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈvaltɪç]. gewaltigen is at rank #11,442, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈvaltɪɡn̩].
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 18920, this pair ranks #1,913,535 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gewaltig vs gewaltigen
Shared letters: aegiltw. Private to "gewaltig": -. Private to "gewaltigen": n.
"gewaltig" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "gewaltigen" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- gewaltig ← egwaltig · geawltig · gewalitg · gewalltig · gewaltgi · gewaltigg · gewalttig · gewatlig
- gewaltigen ← egwaltigen · geawltigen · gewalitgen · gewalltigen · gewaltgien · gewaltiegn · gewaltigenn · gewaltiggen
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gewaltig" and "gewaltigen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "gewaltig" or "gewaltigen" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "gewaltig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gewaltigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,913,535 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gewaltig" and "gewaltigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gewaltigen vs gewaltiges". 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 #1,913,535 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.