ärztlichevsärztlichenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,210
“ärztliche” frequency rank
#13,750
“ärztlichen” frequency rank
23960
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ärztliche ärztlichen
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs ärztlich Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs ärztlich

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ärztliche and ärztlichen apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
ärztliche
10 ch
ärztlichen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. ärztliche ([ˈɛːɐ̯t͡stlɪçə]) and ärztlichen ([ˈɛːɐ̯t͡stlɪçn̩]) 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) - “ärztliche” sits inside “ärztlichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23960, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ärztliche is recorded at frequency rank #10,210, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛːɐ̯t͡stlɪçə]. ärztlichen is at rank #13,750, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈɛːɐ̯t͡stlɪçn̩].

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 23960, this pair ranks #1,854,192 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of ärztliche vs ärztlichen

Shared letters: cehilrtzä. Private to "ärztliche": -. Private to "ärztlichen": n.

"ärztliche" · 9 letters · shape VCCCCVCCV  ·  "ärztlichen" · 10 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

ärztliche#10,210
ärztlichen#13,750

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ärztliche" and "ärztlichen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɛːɐ̯t͡stlɪçə] versus [ˈɛːɐ̯t͡stlɪçn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "ärztliche" or "ärztlichen"?
"ärztliche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,210 in our German list, against #13,750 for "ärztlichen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ärztliche vs ärztlichen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “ärztliche” 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