grenzvsGrenzenTell them apart

Quick tell: grenz is a verb, Grenzen is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“grenz” is a verb and “Grenzen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#34,142
“grenz” frequency rank
#1,183
“Grenzen” frequency rank
35325
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature grenz Grenzen
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs grenzen Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Grenze

Where the eye mixes grenz and Grenzen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

5 ch
grenz
7 ch
Grenzen

Why the eye confuses grenz with Grenzen

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: grenz is [ɡʁɛnt͡s] while Grenzen is [ˈɡʁɛnt͡sn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “grenz” sits inside “Grenzen”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35325, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

grenz is recorded at frequency rank #34,142, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡʁɛnt͡s]. Grenzen is at rank #1,183, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡʁɛnt͡sn̩].

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 35325, this pair ranks #1,642,684 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of grenz vs Grenzen

Shared letters: egnrz. Private to "grenz": -. Private to "Grenzen": -.

"grenz" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC  ·  "Grenzen" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • grenzgernz · ggrenz · grennz · grenzz · grezn · grnez · grrenz · rgenz
  • Grenzengernzen · ggrenzen · grenezn · grennzen · grenzenn · grenzne · grenzzen · greznen

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "grenz" for "Grenzen" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "grenz" is a verb and "Grenzen" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "grenz" or "Grenzen"?
"Grenzen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,183 in our German list, against #34,142 for "grenz". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "grenz" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Grenzen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,642,684 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "grenz" and "Grenzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "greco vs grenz". 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 #1,642,684 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