neigevsneigenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#23,249
“neige” frequency rank
#12,766
“neigen” frequency rank
36015
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature neige neigen
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs neigen in Schräglage geraten; schräg werden

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set neige and neigen apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
neige
6 ch
neigen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. neige ([ˈnaɪ̯ɡə]) and neigen ([ˈnaɪ̯ɡn̩]) 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) - “neige” sits inside “neigen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36015, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

neige is recorded at frequency rank #23,249, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnaɪ̯ɡə]. neigen is at rank #12,766, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnaɪ̯ɡn̩].

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 36015, this pair ranks #1,626,085 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of neige vs neigen

Shared letters: egin. Private to "neige": -. Private to "neigen": -.

"neige" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV  ·  "neigen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • neigeenige · negie · neieg · neigge · niege · nneige
  • neigenenigen · negien · neiegn · neigenn · neiggen · neigne · niegen · nneigen

Frequency comparison

neige#23,249
neigen#12,766

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "neige" and "neigen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈnaɪ̯ɡə] versus [ˈnaɪ̯ɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "neige" or "neigen"?
"neigen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,766 in our German list, against #23,249 for "neige". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering neige vs neigen

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 “neige” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list