KostümevsKostümenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#10,315
“Kostüme” frequency rank
#32,134
“Kostümen” frequency rank
42449
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kostüme Kostümen
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Kostüm Dativ Plural des Substantivs Kostüm

Where the eye mixes Kostüme and Kostümen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Kostüme runs 7 letters (CVCCVCV) against Kostümen's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
Kostüme
8 ch
Kostümen

Visual trap between Kostüme and Kostümen

A purely visual mix-up. Kostüme ([kɔsˈtyːmə]) and Kostümen ([kɔsˈtyːmən]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Kostüme” sits inside “Kostümen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kostüme is recorded at frequency rank #10,315, classified as anoun, pronounced [kɔsˈtyːmə]. Kostümen is at rank #32,134, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kɔsˈtyːmən].

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 42449, this pair ranks #1,448,948 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Kostüme vs Kostümen

Shared letters: ekmostü. Private to "Kostüme": -. Private to "Kostümen": n.

"Kostüme" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV  ·  "Kostümen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Kostüme" for "Kostümen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([kɔsˈtyːmə] versus [kɔsˈtyːmən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Kostüme" or "Kostümen"?
"Kostüme" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,315 in our German list, against #32,134 for "Kostümen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Kostüme" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Kostümen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,448,948 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Kostüme" and "Kostümen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "kosteten vs Kostümen". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,448,948 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