SicherheitslückevsSicherheitslückenTell them apart

Which to use

“Sicherheitslücke” and “Sicherheitslücken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#30,285
“Sicherheitslücke” frequency rank
#24,509
“Sicherheitslücken” frequency rank
54794
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Sicherheitslücke Sicherheitslücken
Definition Schwachstelle in einer Software, durch die ein schädliches Programm oder ein Hacker in den Rechner eindringen kann Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Sicherheitslücke

Where the eye mixes Sicherheitslücke and Sicherheitslücken

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 16 letters in sequence. Sicherheitslücke runs 16 letters (CVCCVCCVVCCCVCCV) against Sicherheitslücken's 17 (CVCCVCCVVCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

16 ch
Sicherheitslücke
17 ch
Sicherheitslücken

Why the eye confuses Sicherheitslücke with Sicherheitslücken

A purely visual mix-up. Sicherheitslücke ([ˈzɪçɐhaɪ̯t͡sˌlʏkə]) and Sicherheitslücken ([ˈzɪçɐhaɪ̯t͡sˌlʏkn̩]) 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) - “Sicherheitslücke” sits inside “Sicherheitslücken”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54794, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Sicherheitslücke is recorded at frequency rank #30,285, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈzɪçɐhaɪ̯t͡sˌlʏkə]. Sicherheitslücken is at rank #24,509, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈzɪçɐhaɪ̯t͡sˌlʏkn̩].

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 54794, this pair ranks #1,004,784 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Sicherheitslücke vs Sicherheitslücken

Shared letters: cehiklrstü. Private to "Sicherheitslücke": -. Private to "Sicherheitslücken": n.

"Sicherheitslücke" · 16 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVCCCVCCV  ·  "Sicherheitslücken" · 17 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVCCCVCCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Sicherheitslücke" and "Sicherheitslücken" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzɪçɐhaɪ̯t͡sˌlʏkə] versus [ˈzɪçɐhaɪ̯t͡sˌlʏkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Sicherheitslücke" or "Sicherheitslücken" show up more?
"Sicherheitslücken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,509 in our German list, against #30,285 for "Sicherheitslücke". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "Sicherheitslücke" and "Sicherheitslücken" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Sicherheitslücke" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Sicherheitslücken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,004,784 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics

Confusion rank #1,004,784 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list