Which to use
“Kästchen” and “Kätzchen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,637
- “Kästchen” frequency rank
- #14,345
- “Kätzchen” frequency rank
- 39982
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Kästchen | Kätzchen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | kleiner Kasten | kleine Katze |
Where the eye mixes Kästchen and Kätzchen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Kästchen vs Kätzchen
A purely visual mix-up. Kästchen ([ˈkɛstçən]) and Kätzchen ([ˈkɛt͡sçən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39982, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Kästchen is recorded at frequency rank #25,637, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɛstçən]. Kätzchen is at rank #14,345, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɛt͡sçən].
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 39982, this pair ranks #1,521,384 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Kästchen vs Kätzchen
Shared letters: cehkntä. Private to "Kästchen": s. Private to "Kätzchen": z.
"Kästchen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCCVC · "Kätzchen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Kästchen" and "Kätzchen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Kästchen" or "Kätzchen" 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 "Kästchen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Kätzchen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,521,384 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Kästchen" and "Kätzchen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kärtchen vs Kästchen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,521,384 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.