Which to use
“Katzen” is a noun and “kotzen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,325
- “Katzen” frequency rank
- #6,820
- “kotzen” frequency rank
- 10145
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Katzen | kotzen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Katze | den Mageninhalt über den Mund entleeren |
Where the eye mixes Katzen and kotzen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Katzen and kotzen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Katzen is [ˈkat͡sn̩] while kotzen is [ˈkɔt͡sn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - a in “Katzen” becomes o in “kotzen”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10145, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Katzen is recorded at frequency rank #3,325, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkat͡sn̩]. kotzen is at rank #6,820, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkɔt͡sn̩].
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 10145, this pair ranks #1,976,575 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Katzen vs kotzen
Shared letters: ekntz. Private to "Katzen": a. Private to "kotzen": o.
"Katzen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "kotzen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Katzen" and "kotzen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Katzen" or "kotzen" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Katzen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kotzen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,976,575 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Katzen" and "kotzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "kitten vs kotzen". 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 #1,976,575 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.