KetzervsKotzeWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#30,144
“Ketzer” frequency rank
#24,411
“Kotze” frequency rank
54555
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Ketzer Kotze
Definition jemand, der kirchliche Dogmen und Glaubenslehren ablehnt und/oder öffentlich kritisiert das Erbrochene

Where the eye mixes Ketzer and Kotze

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Ketzer runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against Kotze's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Ketzer
5 ch
Kotze

Look-alike desk: Ketzer vs Kotze

A purely visual mix-up. Ketzer ([ˈkɛt͡sɐ]) and Kotze ([ˈkɔt͡sə]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54555, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Ketzer is recorded at frequency rank #30,144, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɛt͡sɐ]. Kotze is at rank #24,411, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɔt͡sə].

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 54555, this pair ranks #1,014,307 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Ketzer vs Kotze

Shared letters: ektz. Private to "Ketzer": r. Private to "Kotze": o.

"Ketzer" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "Kotze" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Ketzer ← ektzer · ketezr · kettzer · ketzerr · ketzre · ketzzer · kezter · kketzer
  • Kotze ← kkotze · kotez · kottze · kotzze · kozte · ktoze · oktze

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Ketzer" for "Kotze" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkɛt͡sɐ] versus [ˈkɔt͡sə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Ketzer" or "Kotze"?
"Kotze" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,411 in our German list, against #30,144 for "Ketzer". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "Ketzer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Kotze" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,014,307 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Ketzer" and "Kotze" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Ketzer vs Kutter". 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 #1,014,307 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