Which to use
“rollen” and “rotten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,610
- “rollen” frequency rank
- #34,340
- “rotten” frequency rank
- 36950
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rollen | rotten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | während einer Vor- oder Rückwärtsbewegung sich selbst um die eigene Achse drehen; die Bewegung eines Rades | faulen, verfallen |
Where the eye mixes rollen and rotten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. rollen and rotten follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses rollen with rotten
A purely visual mix-up. rollen ([ˈʁɔlən]) and rotten ([ˈʁɔtn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36950, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rollen is recorded at frequency rank #2,610, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʁɔlən]. rotten is at rank #34,340, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʁɔtn̩].
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 36950, this pair ranks #1,602,560 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of rollen vs rotten
Shared letters: enor. Private to "rollen": l. Private to "rotten": t.
"rollen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "rotten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "rollen" and "rotten" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "rollen" or "rotten"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "rollen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "rotten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,602,560 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rollen" and "rotten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rollten vs rotten". 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 #1,602,560 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.