TollenvstollstenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Tollen is a noun, tollsten is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Tollen” is a noun and “tollsten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,926
“Tollen” frequency rank
#38,448
“tollsten” frequency rank
41374
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Tollen tollsten
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Tolle Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Superlativs des Adjektivs toll

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Tollen and tollsten apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
Tollen
8 ch
tollsten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Tollen is [ˈtɔlən] while tollsten is [ˈtɔlstn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41374, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Tollen is recorded at frequency rank #2,926, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈtɔlən]. tollsten is at rank #38,448, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈtɔlstn̩].

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 41374, this pair ranks #1,481,339 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Tollen vs tollsten

Shared letters: elnot. Private to "Tollen": -. Private to "tollsten": s.

"Tollen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "tollsten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Tollenotllen · tlolen · toleln · tolen · tollenn · tollne · ttollen
  • tollstenotllsten · tlolsten · tollsetn · tollssten · tollstenn · tollstne · tollstten · tolltsen

Frequency comparison

Tollen#2,926
tollsten#38,448

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Tollen" and "tollsten" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Tollen" is a noun and "tollsten" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Tollen" or "tollsten"?
"Tollen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,926 in our German list, against #38,448 for "tollsten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Tollen vs tollsten

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list