KühenvsKükenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,084
“Kühen” frequency rank
#15,935
“Küken” frequency rank
42019
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Kühen Küken
Definition Dativ Plural des Substantivs Kuh frisch geschlüpfter Vogel

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
Kühen
5 ch
Küken

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Kühen ([ˈkyːən]) and Küken ([ˈkyːkn̩]) 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 a single letter - h in “Kühen” becomes k in “Küken”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42019, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Kühen is recorded at frequency rank #26,084, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkyːən]. Küken is at rank #15,935, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkyːkn̩].

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 42019, this pair ranks #1,462,055 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Kühen vs Küken

Shared letters: eknü. Private to "Kühen": h. Private to "Küken": -.

"Kühen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Küken" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Frequency comparison

Kühen#26,084
Küken#15,935

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Kühen" and "Küken" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkyːən] versus [ˈkyːkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Kühen" or "Küken"?
"Küken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,935 in our German list, against #26,084 for "Kühen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Kühen vs Küken

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Kühen” 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