Which to use
“nötige” and “nötigen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,698
- “nötige” frequency rank
- #5,990
- “nötigen” frequency rank
- 12688
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nötige | nötigen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs nötigen | jemanden durch Androhung oder Ausübung von Gewalt zu etwas zwingen |
Where the eye mixes nötige and nötigen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. nötige runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against nötigen's 7 (CVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses nötige with nötigen
A purely visual mix-up. nötige ([ˈnøːtɪɡə]) and nötigen ([ˈnøːtɪɡn̩]) 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) - “nötige” sits inside “nötigen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12688, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nötige is recorded at frequency rank #6,698, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnøːtɪɡə]. nötigen is at rank #5,990, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnøːtɪɡn̩].
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 12688, this pair ranks #1,962,663 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of nötige vs nötigen
Shared letters: egintö. Private to "nötige": -. Private to "nötigen": -.
"nötige" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "nötigen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "nötige" for "nötigen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "nötige" vs "nötigen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "nötige" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nötigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,962,663 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nötige" and "nötigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nötige vs nötiger". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,962,663 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.