UrteilvsUrteilsConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#1,679
“Urteil” frequency rank
#20,445
“Urteils” frequency rank
22124
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Urteil Urteils
Definition richterliche Entscheidung eines Gerichtes zur abschließenden Klärung eines Rechtsstreites Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Urteil

Where the eye mixes Urteil and Urteils

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Urteil runs 6 letters (VCCVVC) against Urteils's 7 (VCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Urteil
7 ch
Urteils

Visual trap between Urteil and Urteils

A purely visual mix-up. Urteil ([ˈuːɐ̯ˌtaɪ̯l]) and Urteils ([ˈʊʁtaɪ̯ls]) 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) - “Urteil” sits inside “Urteils”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22124, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Urteil is recorded at frequency rank #1,679, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈuːɐ̯ˌtaɪ̯l]. Urteils is at rank #20,445, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʊʁtaɪ̯ls].

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 22124, this pair ranks #1,877,986 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Urteil vs Urteils

Shared letters: eilrtu. Private to "Urteil": -. Private to "Urteils": s.

"Urteil" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVC  ·  "Urteils" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Urteil ← ruteil · uretil · urrteil · urteill · urteli · urtiel · urtteil · utreil
  • Urteils ← ruteils · uretils · urrteils · urteills · urteilss · urteisl · urtelis · urtiels

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Urteil" for "Urteils" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈuːɐ̯ˌtaɪ̯l] versus [ˈʊʁtaɪ̯ls]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Urteil" or "Urteils"?
"Urteil" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,679 in our German list, against #20,445 for "Urteils". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Urteil" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Urteils" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,877,986 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Urteil" and "Urteils" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Urteils vs urteilte". 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 #1,877,986 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