Which to use
“Keulen” is a noun and “kreuzen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #45,383
- “Keulen” frequency rank
- #14,850
- “kreuzen” frequency rank
- 60233
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Keulen | kreuzen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Keule | Tiere oder Pflanzen verschiedener Art, Rasse, Gattung oder Sorte zur Paarung beziehungsweise geschlechtlichen Vereinigung bringen |
Where the eye mixes Keulen and kreuzen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Keulen runs 6 letters (CVVCVC) against kreuzen's 7 (CCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Keulen with kreuzen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Keulen is [ˈkɔɪ̯lən] while kreuzen is [ˈkʁɔɪ̯t͡sn̩]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60233, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Keulen is recorded at frequency rank #45,383, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɔɪ̯lən]. kreuzen is at rank #14,850, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkʁɔɪ̯t͡sn̩].
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 60233, this pair ranks #794,686 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Keulen vs kreuzen
Shared letters: eknu. Private to "Keulen": l. Private to "kreuzen": rz.
"Keulen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "kreuzen" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Keulen" for "kreuzen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Keulen" or "kreuzen"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "Keulen" and "kreuzen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Keulen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kreuzen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #794,686 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Keulen" and "kreuzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kehlen 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 #794,686 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.