Which to use
“trockenes” is an adjective and “trocknen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,985
- “trockenes” frequency rank
- #11,134
- “trocknen” frequency rank
- 39119
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | trockenes | trocknen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs trocken | etwas, das nass ist, trocken machen; Feuchtigkeit entziehen |
Where the eye mixes trockenes and trocknen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. trockenes runs 9 letters (CCVCCVCVC) against trocknen's 8 (CCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses trockenes with trocknen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: trockenes is [ˈtʁɔkənəs] while trocknen is [ˈtʁɔknən]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39119, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
trockenes is recorded at frequency rank #27,985, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈtʁɔkənəs]. trocknen is at rank #11,134, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtʁɔknən].
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 39119, this pair ranks #1,545,586 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of trockenes vs trocknen
Shared letters: ceknort. Private to "trockenes": s. Private to "trocknen": -.
"trockenes" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCVCVC · "trocknen" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "trockenes" for "trocknen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "trockenes" or "trocknen" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "trockenes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "trocknen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,545,586 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "trockenes" and "trocknen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "trockenem vs trockenes". 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 #1,545,586 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.