Which to use
“eiserner” and “externer” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #43,133
- “eiserner” frequency rank
- #23,926
- “externer” frequency rank
- 67059
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | eiserner | externer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs eisern | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs extern |
Where the eye mixes eiserner and externer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses eiserner with externer
A purely visual mix-up. eiserner ([ˈaɪ̯zɐnɐ]) and externer ([ˌɛksˈtɛʁnɐ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 67059, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
eiserner is recorded at frequency rank #43,133, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯zɐnɐ]. externer is at rank #23,926, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌɛksˈtɛʁnɐ].
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 67059, this pair ranks #552,594 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of eiserner vs externer
Shared letters: enr. Private to "eiserner": is. Private to "externer": tx.
"eiserner" · 8 letters · shape VVCVCCVC · "externer" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "eiserner" and "externer" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "eiserner" or "externer"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "eiserner" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "externer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #552,594 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "eiserner" and "externer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Eisenerz vs eiserner". 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 #552,594 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.