OrdenvsordnenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Orden is a noun, ordnen is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Orden” is a noun and “ordnen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,700
“Orden” frequency rank
#16,507
“ordnen” frequency rank
23207
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Orden ordnen
Definition (klösterliche) Gemeinschaft, die unter einem Oberen oder einer Oberin nach bestimmten Regeln lebt und deren Mitglieder bestimmte Gelübde abgelegt haben müssen etwas in eine bestimmte Reihenfolge oder Verteilung bringen

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
Orden
6 ch
ordnen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Orden is [ˈɔʁdn̩] while ordnen is [ˈɔʁdnən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23207, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Orden is recorded at frequency rank #6,700, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈɔʁdn̩]. ordnen is at rank #16,507, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈɔʁdnən].

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 23207, this pair ranks #1,864,362 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Orden vs ordnen

Shared letters: denor. Private to "Orden": -. Private to "ordnen": -.

"Orden" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC  ·  "ordnen" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Ordenodren · ordden · ordenn · oredn · orrden
  • ordnenodrnen · orddnen · ordnenn · ordnne · ordnnen · ornden · orrdnen · rodnen

Frequency comparison

Orden#6,700
ordnen#16,507

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Orden" and "ordnen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Orden" is a noun and "ordnen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Orden" or "ordnen"?
"Orden" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,700 in our German list, against #16,507 for "ordnen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Orden vs ordnen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Orden”; for a verb, it's “ordnen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Orden” 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