Which to use
“Irrtum” and “Irrtümer” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,049
- “Irrtum” frequency rank
- #25,182
- “Irrtümer” frequency rank
- 34231
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Irrtum | Irrtümer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | unabsichtlich falsche Annahme | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Irrtum |
Where the eye mixes Irrtum and Irrtümer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Irrtum vs Irrtümer
A purely visual mix-up. Irrtum ([ˈɪʁtuːm]) and Irrtümer ([ˈɪʁtyːmɐ]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34231, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Irrtum is recorded at frequency rank #9,049, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈɪʁtuːm]. Irrtümer is at rank #25,182, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɪʁtyːmɐ].
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 34231, this pair ranks #1,668,088 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Irrtum vs Irrtümer
Shared letters: imrt. Private to "Irrtum": u. Private to "Irrtümer": eü.
"Irrtum" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC · "Irrtümer" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Irrtum ← irrtmu · irrttum · irrtumm · irrutm · irtrum · irtum · rirtum
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Irrtum" and "Irrtümer" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Irrtum" or "Irrtümer" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Irrtum" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Irrtümer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,668,088 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Irrtum" and "Irrtümer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "irrte vs Irrtum". 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 #1,668,088 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.