Which to use
“ähnlich” and “ähnlicher” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,049
- “ähnlich” frequency rank
- #8,314
- “ähnlicher” frequency rank
- 9363
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ähnlich | ähnlicher |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in manchem übereinstimmend, teilweise analog | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs ähnlich |
Where the eye mixes ähnlich and ähnlicher
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. ähnlich runs 7 letters (VCCCVCC) against ähnlicher's 9 (VCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ähnlich with ähnlicher
A purely visual mix-up. ähnlich ([ˈɛːnlɪç]) and ähnlicher ([ˈɛːnlɪçɐ]) 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) - “ähnlich” sits inside “ähnlicher”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9363, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ähnlich is recorded at frequency rank #1,049, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛːnlɪç]. ähnlicher is at rank #8,314, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛːnlɪçɐ].
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 9363, this pair ranks #1,980,308 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ähnlich vs ähnlicher
Shared letters: chilnä. Private to "ähnlich": -. Private to "ähnlicher": er.
"ähnlich" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCC · "ähnlicher" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ähnlich" and "ähnlicher" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "ähnlich" or "ähnlicher"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "ähnlich" and "ähnlicher" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ähnlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ähnlicher" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,980,308 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ähnlich" and "ähnlicher" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ähnlicher vs amtlicher". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,980,308 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.