pflanzen vs Pflanzung, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#2,172
“pflanzen” frequency rank: #49,150
“Pflanzung” frequency rank: 51322
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	pflanzen	Pflanzung
Definition	zum Anwachsen einsetzen	das Verbinden eines jungen Gewächses mit dem Erdboden

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pflanzen and Pflanzung apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch

pflanzen

9 ch

Pflanzung

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pflanzen is [ˈp͡flant͡sn̩] while Pflanzung is [ˈp͡flant͡sʊŋ]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51322, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pflanzen is recorded at frequency rank #2,172, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈp͡flant͡sn̩]. Pflanzung is at rank #49,150, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈp͡flant͡sʊŋ].

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 51322, this pair ranks #1,139,910 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pflanzen vs Pflanzung

Shared letters: aflnpz. Private to "pflanzen": e. Private to "Pflanzung": gu.

"pflanzen" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC · "Pflanzung" · 9 letters · shape CCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

pflanzen ← fplanzen · pfalnzen · pfflanzen · pflanezn · pflannzen · pflanzenn · pflanzne · pflanzzen
Pflanzung ← fplanzung · pfalnzung · pfflanzung · pflannzung · pflanuzng · pflanznug · pflanzugn · pflanzungg

Frequency comparison

pflanzen#2,172

Pflanzung#49,150

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pflanzen" and "Pflanzung" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "pflanzen" is a verb and "Pflanzung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "pflanzen" or "Pflanzung"?

"pflanzen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,172 in our German list, against #49,150 for "Pflanzung". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering pflanzen vs Pflanzung

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “pflanzen”; for a noun, it's “Pflanzung”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pflanzen” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable