KragenvskrähenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Kragen is a noun, krähen is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Kragen” is a noun and “krähen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#10,682
“Kragen” frequency rank
#26,490
“krähen” frequency rank
37172
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kragen krähen
Definition den Hals einfassendes Teil der Kleidung den typischen Tierlaut eines Hahnes machen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Kragen and krähen apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
Kragen
6 ch
krähen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Kragen is [ˈkʁaːɡn̩] while krähen is [ˈkʁɛːən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37172, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kragen is recorded at frequency rank #10,682, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkʁaːɡn̩]. krähen is at rank #26,490, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkʁɛːən].

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 37172, this pair ranks #1,597,008 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Kragen vs krähen

Shared letters: eknr. Private to "Kragen": ag. Private to "krähen": .

"Kragen" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC  ·  "krähen" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Kragenkkragen · kraegn · kragenn · kraggen · kragne · krgaen · krragen · rkagen

Frequency comparison

Kragen#10,682
krähen#26,490

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Kragen" and "krähen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Kragen" is a noun and "krähen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Kragen" or "krähen"?
"Kragen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,682 in our German list, against #26,490 for "krähen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Kragen vs krähen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Kragen”; for a verb, it's “krähen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Kragen” 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