IdentitätvsIdentitätenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#3,129
“Identität” frequency rank
#17,943
“Identitäten” frequency rank
21072
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Identität Identitäten
Definition eindeutige Unterscheidbarkeit einer Person oder einer Sache von einer anderen Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Identität

Where the eye mixes Identität and Identitäten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. Identität runs 9 letters (VCVCCVCVC) against Identitäten's 11 (VCVCCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
Identität
11 ch
Identitäten

Visual trap between Identität and Identitäten

A purely visual mix-up. Identität ([iˌdɛntiˈtɛːt]) and Identitäten ([iˌdɛntiˈtɛːtn̩]) 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) - “Identität” sits inside “Identitäten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21072, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Identität is recorded at frequency rank #3,129, classified as anoun, pronounced [iˌdɛntiˈtɛːt]. Identitäten is at rank #17,943, tagged as anoun, pronounced [iˌdɛntiˈtɛːtn̩].

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 21072, this pair ranks #1,890,472 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Identität vs Identitäten

Shared letters: deintä. Private to "Identität": -. Private to "Identitäten": -.

"Identität" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC  ·  "Identitäten" · 11 letters · shape VCVCCVCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Identität" for "Identitäten" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([iˌdɛntiˈtɛːt] versus [iˌdɛntiˈtɛːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Identität" or "Identitäten"?
"Identität" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,129 in our German list, against #17,943 for "Identitäten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "Identität" and "Identitäten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Identität" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Identitäten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,890,472 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Identität" and "Identitäten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Identität vs identity". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,890,472 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