empfindlichevsempfindlichenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“empfindliche” and “empfindlichen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#21,588
“empfindliche” frequency rank
#24,320
“empfindlichen” frequency rank
45908
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature empfindliche empfindlichen
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs empfindlich Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs empfindlich

Where the eye mixes empfindliche and empfindlichen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 12 letters in sequence. empfindliche runs 12 letters (VCCCVCCCVCCV) against empfindlichen's 13 (VCCCVCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

12 ch
empfindliche
13 ch
empfindlichen

Look-alike desk: empfindliche vs empfindlichen

A purely visual mix-up. empfindliche ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə]) and empfindlichen ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçn̩]) 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) - “empfindliche” sits inside “empfindlichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45908, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

empfindliche is recorded at frequency rank #21,588, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə]. empfindlichen is at rank #24,320, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçn̩].

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 45908, this pair ranks #1,337,072 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of empfindliche vs empfindlichen

Shared letters: cdefhilmnp. Private to "empfindliche": -. Private to "empfindlichen": -.

"empfindliche" · 12 letters · shape VCCCVCCCVCCV  ·  "empfindlichen" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • empfindliche ← emfpindliche · emmpfindliche · empffindliche · empfidnliche · empfinddliche · empfindilche · empfindlcihe · empfindlicche
  • empfindlichen ← emfpindlichen · emmpfindlichen · empffindlichen · empfidnlichen · empfinddlichen · empfindilchen · empfindlcihen · empfindlicchen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "empfindliche" and "empfindlichen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə] versus [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "empfindliche" vs "empfindlichen" - which ranks higher?
"empfindliche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,588 in our German list, against #24,320 for "empfindlichen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "empfindliche" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "empfindlichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,337,072 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "empfindliche" and "empfindlichen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empfindlichen 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 #1,337,072 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list