Which to use
“patron” and “Patronen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,997
- “patron” frequency rank
- #21,017
- “Patronen” frequency rank
- 48014
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | patron | Patronen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Akkusativ Singular des Substantivs patro | Dativ Plural des Substantivs Patron |
Where the eye mixes patron and Patronen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. patron runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against Patronen's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses patron with Patronen
A purely visual mix-up. patron ([ˈpatron]) and Patronen ([ˌpaˈtʁoːnən]) 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 extra letter(s) - “patron” sits inside “Patronen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48014, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
patron is recorded at frequency rank #26,997, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpatron]. Patronen is at rank #21,017, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˌpaˈtʁoːnən].
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 48014, this pair ranks #1,263,957 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of patron vs Patronen
Shared letters: anoprt. Private to "patron": -. Private to "Patronen": e.
"patron" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Patronen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "patron" for "Patronen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "patron" or "Patronen" show up more?
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 "patron" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Patronen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,263,957 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "patron" and "Patronen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "patron vs Patrone". 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 #1,263,957 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.