kontroversvsKontroversenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: kontrovers is a adjective, Kontroversen is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“kontrovers” is an adjective and “Kontroversen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#16,205
“kontrovers” frequency rank
#17,055
“Kontroversen” frequency rank
33260
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature kontrovers Kontroversen
Definition entgegengesetzt, sich widersprechend Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Kontroverse

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set kontrovers and Kontroversen apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
kontrovers
12 ch
Kontroversen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: kontrovers is [kɔntʁoˈvɛʁs] while Kontroversen is [ˌkɔntʁoˈvɛʁzn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “kontrovers” sits inside “Kontroversen”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33260, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

kontrovers is recorded at frequency rank #16,205, classified as anadj, pronounced [kɔntʁoˈvɛʁs]. Kontroversen is at rank #17,055, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˌkɔntʁoˈvɛʁzn̩].

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 33260, this pair ranks #1,689,858 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of kontrovers vs Kontroversen

Shared letters: eknorstv. Private to "kontrovers": -. Private to "Kontroversen": -.

"kontrovers" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCC  ·  "Kontroversen" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • kontroverskkontrovers · knotrovers · konntrovers · konrtovers · kontorvers · kontroevrs · kontroverrs · kontroverss
  • Kontroversenkkontroversen · knotroversen · konntroversen · konrtoversen · kontorversen · kontroevrsen · kontroveresn · kontroverrsen

Frequency comparison

kontrovers#16,205
Kontroversen#17,055

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "kontrovers" and "Kontroversen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "kontrovers" is an adjective and "Kontroversen" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "kontrovers" or "Kontroversen"?
"kontrovers" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,205 in our German list, against #17,055 for "Kontroversen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering kontrovers vs Kontroversen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “kontrovers”; for a noun, it's “Kontroversen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “kontrovers” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list