Which to use
“keins” is an unknown and “kenn” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,734
- “keins” frequency rank
- #3,750
- “kenn” frequency rank
- 12484
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | keins | kenn |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Neutrum nicht attributiv des Indefinitpronomens kein | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kennen |
Where the eye mixes keins and kenn
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. keins runs 5 letters (CVVCC) against kenn's 4 (CVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses keins with kenn
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: keins is [kaɪ̯ns] while kenn is [kɛn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (unknown vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12484, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
keins is recorded at frequency rank #8,734, classified as anunknown, pronounced [kaɪ̯ns]. kenn is at rank #3,750, tagged as averb, pronounced [kɛn].
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 12484, this pair ranks #1,963,912 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of keins vs kenn
Shared letters: ekn. Private to "keins": is. Private to "kenn": -.
"keins" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "kenn" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "keins" and "kenn" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "keins" or "kenn" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "keins" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kenn" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,963,912 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "keins" and "kenn" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "keins vs Knies". 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 #1,963,912 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.