gutemvsGüternConfusable pair

Quick tell: gutem is a adjective, Gütern is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“gutem” is an adjective and “Gütern” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#4,125
“gutem” frequency rank
#14,582
“Gütern” frequency rank
18707
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gutem Gütern
Definition Dativ Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs gut Dativ Plural des Substantivs Gut

Where the eye mixes gutem and Gütern

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. gutem runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against Gütern's 6 (CVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
gutem
6 ch
Gütern

Why the eye confuses gutem with Gütern

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: gutem is [ˈɡuːtəm] while Gütern is [ˈɡyːtɐn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18707, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gutem is recorded at frequency rank #4,125, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɡuːtəm]. Gütern is at rank #14,582, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡyːtɐn].

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 18707, this pair ranks #1,915,672 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of gutem vs Gütern

Shared letters: egt. Private to "gutem": mu. Private to "Gütern": nrü.

"gutem" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Gütern" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gutem ← ggutem · gtuem · guetm · gutemm · gutme · guttem · ugtem

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "gutem" and "Gütern" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "gutem" is an adjective and "Gütern" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "gutem" or "Gütern"?
"gutem" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,125 in our German list, against #14,582 for "Gütern". 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 "gutem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Gütern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,915,672 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "gutem" and "Gütern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Guben vs Gütern". 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 #1,915,672 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