Which to use
“Spannung” and “Spannungen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,544
- “Spannung” frequency rank
- #8,279
- “Spannungen” frequency rank
- 11823
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Spannung | Spannungen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (»elektrische Spannung«) die (nutzbare) Potenzialdifferenz zwischen zwei Orten im elektrischen Feld | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Spannung |
Where the eye mixes Spannung and Spannungen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Spannung runs 8 letters (CCVCCVCC) against Spannungen's 10 (CCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Spannung and Spannungen
A purely visual mix-up. Spannung ([ˈʃpanʊŋ]) and Spannungen ([ˈʃpanʊŋən]) 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) - “Spannung” sits inside “Spannungen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11823, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Spannung is recorded at frequency rank #3,544, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃpanʊŋ]. Spannungen is at rank #8,279, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃpanʊŋən].
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 11823, this pair ranks #1,967,697 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Spannung vs Spannungen
Shared letters: agnpsu. Private to "Spannung": -. Private to "Spannungen": e.
"Spannung" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC · "Spannungen" · 10 letters · shape CCVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Spannung ← psannung · sapnnung · spannnug · spannugn · spannungg · spannunng · spanung · spanunng
- Spannungen ← psannungen · sapnnungen · spannnugen · spannugnen · spannunegn · spannungenn · spannunggen · spannungne
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Spannung" and "Spannungen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "Spannung" or "Spannungen"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Spannung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Spannungen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,967,697 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Spannung" and "Spannungen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "spannen vs Spannung". 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 #1,967,697 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.