Which to use
“mitspielen” and “mitzuspielen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,137
- “mitspielen” frequency rank
- #44,802
- “mitzuspielen” frequency rank
- 54939
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mitspielen | mitzuspielen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit anderen gemeinsam etwas spielen | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs mitspielen |
Where the eye mixes mitspielen and mitzuspielen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. mitspielen runs 10 letters (CVCCCVVCVC) against mitzuspielen's 12 (CVCCVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses mitspielen with mitzuspielen
A purely visual mix-up. mitspielen ([ˈmɪtˌʃpiːlən]) and mitzuspielen ([ˈmɪtt͡suˌʃpiːlən]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54939, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mitspielen is recorded at frequency rank #10,137, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmɪtˌʃpiːlən]. mitzuspielen is at rank #44,802, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈmɪtt͡suˌʃpiːlən].
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 54939, this pair ranks #998,990 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of mitspielen vs mitzuspielen
Shared letters: eilmnpst. Private to "mitspielen": -. Private to "mitzuspielen": uz.
"mitspielen" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVVCVC · "mitzuspielen" · 12 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- mitspielen ← imtspielen · mistpielen · mitpsielen · mitsipelen · mitspeilen · mitspieeln · mitspielenn · mitspiellen
- mitzuspielen ← imtzuspielen · mittzuspielen · mituzspielen · mitzsupielen · mitzupsielen · mitzusipelen · mitzuspeilen · mitzuspieeln
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "mitspielen" for "mitzuspielen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "mitspielen" vs "mitzuspielen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mitspielen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mitzuspielen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #998,990 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mitspielen" and "mitzuspielen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mitspielen vs Mitspielern". 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 #998,990 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.