auswärtigenvsauswärtigesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#9,327
“auswärtigen” frequency rank
#33,450
“auswärtiges” frequency rank
42777
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature auswärtigen auswärtiges
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs auswärtig Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs auswärtig

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set auswärtigen and auswärtiges apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

11 ch
auswärtigen
11 ch
auswärtiges

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. auswärtigen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌvɛʁtɪɡn̩]) and auswärtiges ([ˈaʊ̯sˌvɛʁtɪɡəs]) 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 a single letter - n in “auswärtigen” becomes s in “auswärtiges”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42777, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

auswärtigen is recorded at frequency rank #9,327, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌvɛʁtɪɡn̩]. auswärtiges is at rank #33,450, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌvɛʁtɪɡəs].

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 42777, this pair ranks #1,438,787 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of auswärtigen vs auswärtiges

Shared letters: aegirstuwä. Private to "auswärtigen": n. Private to "auswärtiges": -.

"auswärtigen" · 11 letters · shape VVCCVCCVCVC  ·  "auswärtiges" · 11 letters · shape VVCCVCCVCVC

Frequency comparison

auswärtigen#9,327
auswärtiges#33,450

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "auswärtigen" and "auswärtiges" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯sˌvɛʁtɪɡn̩] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌvɛʁtɪɡəs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "auswärtigen" or "auswärtiges"?
"auswärtigen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,327 in our German list, against #33,450 for "auswärtiges". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering auswärtigen vs auswärtiges

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 “auswärtigen” 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