Which to use
“Bastard” and “Bastarde” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,819
- “Bastard” frequency rank
- #27,207
- “Bastarde” frequency rank
- 39026
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Bastard | Bastarde |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | uneheliches Kind, besonders eines gesellschaftlich hoch gestellten Vaters und einer Mutter aus niedrigerem Stand | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Bastard |
Where the eye mixes Bastard and Bastarde
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Bastard runs 7 letters (CVCCVCC) against Bastarde's 8 (CVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Bastard with Bastarde
A purely visual mix-up. Bastard ([ˈbastaʁt]) and Bastarde ([ˈbastaʁdə]) 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) - “Bastard” sits inside “Bastarde”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39026, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Bastard is recorded at frequency rank #11,819, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈbastaʁt]. Bastarde is at rank #27,207, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbastaʁdə].
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 39026, this pair ranks #1,548,147 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Bastard vs Bastarde
Shared letters: abdrst. Private to "Bastard": -. Private to "Bastarde": e.
"Bastard" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "Bastarde" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Bastard" and "Bastarde" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Bastard" vs "Bastarde" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Bastard" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Bastarde" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,548,147 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Bastard" and "Bastarde" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "basta vs Bastard". 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 #1,548,147 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.