Which to use
“eigentlicher” and “eigentliches” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,605
- “eigentlicher” frequency rank
- #38,700
- “eigentliches” frequency rank
- 73305
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eigentlicher | eigentliches |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs eigentlich | Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs eigentlich |
Where the eye mixes eigentlicher and eigentliches
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: eigentlicher vs eigentliches
A purely visual mix-up. eigentlicher ([ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tlɪçɐ]) and eigentliches ([ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tlɪçəs]) 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 - r in “eigentlicher” becomes s in “eigentliches”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73305, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
eigentlicher is recorded at frequency rank #34,605, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tlɪçɐ]. eigentliches is at rank #38,700, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯ɡn̩tlɪçəs].
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 73305, this pair ranks #363,993 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of eigentlicher vs eigentliches
Shared letters: ceghilnt. Private to "eigentlicher": r. Private to "eigentliches": s.
"eigentlicher" · 12 letters · shape VVCVCCCVCCVC · "eigentliches" · 12 letters · shape VVCVCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- eigentlicher ← egientlicher · eiegntlicher · eigenlticher · eigenntlicher · eigentilcher · eigentlciher · eigentliccher · eigentlicehr
- eigentliches ← egientliches · eiegntliches · eigenltiches · eigenntliches · eigentilches · eigentlcihes · eigentlicches · eigentlicehs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "eigentlicher" for "eigentliches" ever safe?
Which is more common, "eigentlicher" or "eigentliches"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "eigentlicher" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "eigentliches" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #363,993 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eigentlicher" and "eigentliches" 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 #363,993 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.