Which to use
“empfindlich” and “empfindliche” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,640
- “empfindlich” frequency rank
- #21,588
- “empfindliche” frequency rank
- 32228
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | empfindlich | empfindliche |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | körperlich leicht auf äußere Einflüsse reagierend | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs empfindlich |
Where the eye mixes empfindlich and empfindliche
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. empfindlich runs 11 letters (VCCCVCCCVCC) against empfindliche's 12 (VCCCVCCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses empfindlich with empfindliche
A purely visual mix-up. empfindlich ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪç]) and empfindliche ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə]) 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) - “empfindlich” sits inside “empfindliche”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32228, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
empfindlich is recorded at frequency rank #10,640, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪç]. empfindliche is at rank #21,588, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə].
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 32228, this pair ranks #1,711,996 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of empfindlich vs empfindliche
Shared letters: cdefhilmnp. Private to "empfindlich": -. Private to "empfindliche": -.
"empfindlich" · 11 letters · shape VCCCVCCCVCC · "empfindliche" · 12 letters · shape VCCCVCCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- empfindlich ← emfpindlich · emmpfindlich · empffindlich · empfidnlich · empfinddlich · empfindilch · empfindlcih · empfindlicch
- empfindliche ← emfpindliche · emmpfindliche · empffindliche · empfidnliche · empfinddliche · empfindilche · empfindlcihe · empfindlicche
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "empfindlich" and "empfindliche" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "empfindlich" vs "empfindliche" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "empfindlich" and "empfindliche" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "empfindlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "empfindliche" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,711,996 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "empfindlich" and "empfindliche" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empfindliche vs empfindlicher". 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 #1,711,996 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.