vollemvsvollerWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: vollem is a adjective, voller is a preposition, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“vollem” is an adjective and “voller” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,874
“vollem” frequency rank
#1,310
“voller” frequency rank
8184
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vollem voller
Definition Dativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs voll angefüllt mit; mit sehr viel

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vollem and voller apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
vollem
6 ch
voller

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vollem is [ˈfɔləm] while voller is [ˈfɔlɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - m in “vollem” becomes r in “voller”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8184, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vollem is recorded at frequency rank #6,874, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɔləm]. voller is at rank #1,310, tagged as aprep, pronounced [ˈfɔlɐ].

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 8184, this pair ranks #1,985,295 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vollem vs voller

Shared letters: elov. Private to "vollem": m. Private to "voller": r.

"vollem" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "voller" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vollemovllem · vlolem · volelm · volem · vollemm · vollme · vvollem
  • vollerovller · vloler · volelr · voler · vollerr · vollre · vvoller

Frequency comparison

vollem#6,874
voller#1,310

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vollem" and "voller" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "vollem" is an adjective and "voller" a preposition, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "vollem" or "voller"?
"voller" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,310 in our German list, against #6,874 for "vollem". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering vollem vs voller

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “vollem”; for a preposition, it's “voller”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “vollem” 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