Which to use
“kratzen” and “kreuzen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,138
- “kratzen” frequency rank
- #14,850
- “kreuzen” frequency rank
- 29988
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kratzen | kreuzen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich mit den Fingernägeln, Krallen oder ähnlichen spitzen, scharfen Dingen, die dazu geeignet sind, einen Abrieb zu verursachen, schaben | Tiere oder Pflanzen verschiedener Art, Rasse, Gattung oder Sorte zur Paarung beziehungsweise geschlechtlichen Vereinigung bringen |
Where the eye mixes kratzen and kreuzen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. kratzen (CCVCCVC) and kreuzen (CCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses kratzen with kreuzen
A purely visual mix-up. kratzen ([ˈkʁat͡sn̩]) and kreuzen ([ˈkʁɔɪ̯t͡sn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29988, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kratzen is recorded at frequency rank #15,138, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkʁat͡sn̩]. 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 29988, this pair ranks #1,756,477 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of kratzen vs kreuzen
Shared letters: eknrz. Private to "kratzen": at. Private to "kreuzen": u.
"kratzen" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC · "kreuzen" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "kratzen" for "kreuzen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "kratzen" or "kreuzen"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "kratzen" 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 #1,756,477 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "kratzen" and "kreuzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Keulen vs kreuzen". 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 #1,756,477 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.