KeimenvsKeksenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#33,144
“Keimen” frequency rank
#41,935
“Keksen” frequency rank
75079
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Keimen Keksen
Definition Dativ Plural des Substantivs Keim Dativ Plural des Substantivs Keks

Where the eye mixes Keimen and Keksen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Keimen (CVVCVC) and Keksen (CVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

6 ch
Keimen
6 ch
Keksen

Look-alike desk: Keimen vs Keksen

A purely visual mix-up. Keimen ([ˈkaɪ̯mən]) and Keksen ([ˈkeːksn̩]) 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 75079, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Keimen is recorded at frequency rank #33,144, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkaɪ̯mən]. Keksen is at rank #41,935, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkeːksn̩].

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 75079, this pair ranks #316,965 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Keimen vs Keksen

Shared letters: ekn. Private to "Keimen": im. Private to "Keksen": s.

"Keimen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "Keksen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Keimen ← ekimen · keiemn · keimenn · keimmen · keimne · kemien · kiemen · kkeimen
  • Keksen ← ekksen · kekesn · kekksen · keksenn · keksne · kekssen · kesken · kkeksen

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Keimen" for "Keksen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkaɪ̯mən] versus [ˈkeːksn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Keimen" vs "Keksen" - which ranks higher?
"Keimen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #33,144 in our German list, against #41,935 for "Keksen". 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 "Keimen" and "Keksen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Keimen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Keksen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #316,965 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Keimen" and "Keksen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Keksen vs Keulen". 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 #316,965 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