NahrungsmittelvsNahrungsmittelnWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#10,528
“Nahrungsmittel” frequency rank
#23,633
“Nahrungsmitteln” frequency rank
34161
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Nahrungsmittel Nahrungsmitteln
Definition Speisen und Getränke, die dem Menschen und seinem Körper zur Ernährung, also seiner Versorgung mit Energie, Baustoffen und Vitaminen dienen Dativ Plural des Substantivs Nahrungsmittel

Where the eye mixes Nahrungsmittel and Nahrungsmitteln

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 14 letters in sequence. Nahrungsmittel runs 14 letters (CVCCVCCCCVCCVC) against Nahrungsmitteln's 15 (CVCCVCCCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

14 ch
Nahrungsmittel
15 ch
Nahrungsmitteln

Visual trap between Nahrungsmittel and Nahrungsmitteln

A purely visual mix-up. Nahrungsmittel ([ˈnaːʁʊŋsˌmɪtl̩]) and Nahrungsmitteln ([ˈnaːʁʊŋsˌmɪtl̩n]) 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) - “Nahrungsmittel” sits inside “Nahrungsmitteln”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34161, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Nahrungsmittel is recorded at frequency rank #10,528, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈnaːʁʊŋsˌmɪtl̩]. Nahrungsmitteln is at rank #23,633, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈnaːʁʊŋsˌmɪtl̩n].

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 34161, this pair ranks #1,669,728 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Nahrungsmittel vs Nahrungsmitteln

Shared letters: aeghilmnrstu. Private to "Nahrungsmittel": -. Private to "Nahrungsmitteln": -.

"Nahrungsmittel" · 14 letters · shape CVCCVCCCCVCCVC  ·  "Nahrungsmitteln" · 15 letters · shape CVCCVCCCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Nahrungsmittel ← anhrungsmittel · nahhrungsmittel · nahrnugsmittel · nahrrungsmittel · nahrugnsmittel · nahrunggsmittel · nahrungmsittel · nahrungsimttel
  • Nahrungsmitteln ← anhrungsmitteln · nahhrungsmitteln · nahrnugsmitteln · nahrrungsmitteln · nahrugnsmitteln · nahrunggsmitteln · nahrungmsitteln · nahrungsimtteln

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Nahrungsmittel" and "Nahrungsmitteln" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈnaːʁʊŋsˌmɪtl̩] versus [ˈnaːʁʊŋsˌmɪtl̩n]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Nahrungsmittel" vs "Nahrungsmitteln" - which ranks higher?
"Nahrungsmittel" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,528 in our German list, against #23,633 for "Nahrungsmitteln". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Nahrungsmittel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Nahrungsmitteln" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,669,728 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • 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 #1,669,728 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