Which to use
“eigentlich” is an adverb and “eigentlichen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #242
- “eigentlich” frequency rank
- #3,807
- “eigentlichen” frequency rank
- 4049
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eigentlich | eigentlichen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | im Prinzip | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs eigentlich |
Where the eye mixes eigentlich and eigentlichen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: eigentlich vs eigentlichen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: eigentlich is [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tlɪç] while eigentlichen is [ˈaɪ̯ɡəntlɪçn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “eigentlich” sits inside “eigentlichen”, and the parts of speech differ too (adverb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4049, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
eigentlich is recorded at frequency rank #242, classified as anadv, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tlɪç]. eigentlichen is at rank #3,807, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡəntlɪçn̩].
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 4049, this pair ranks #1,998,707 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of eigentlich vs eigentlichen
Shared letters: ceghilnt. Private to "eigentlich": -. Private to "eigentlichen": -.
"eigentlich" · 10 letters · shape VVCVCCCVCC · "eigentlichen" · 12 letters · shape VVCVCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- eigentlich ← egientlich · eiegntlich · eigenltich · eigenntlich · eigentilch · eigentlcih · eigentlicch · eigentlichh
- eigentlichen ← egientlichen · eiegntlichen · eigenltichen · eigenntlichen · eigentilchen · eigentlcihen · eigentlicchen · eigentlicehn
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "eigentlich" and "eigentlichen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "eigentlich" vs "eigentlichen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "eigentlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "eigentlichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,998,707 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eigentlich" and "eigentlichen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eigentlichen vs eigentliches". 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 #1,998,707 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.