empfindlichevsempfindlicherConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#21,588
“empfindliche” frequency rank
#37,488
“empfindlicher” frequency rank
59076
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature empfindliche empfindlicher
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs empfindlich Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs empfindlich

Where the eye mixes empfindliche and empfindlicher

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

12 ch
empfindliche
13 ch
empfindlicher

Look-alike desk: empfindliche vs empfindlicher

A purely visual mix-up. empfindliche ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə]) and empfindlicher ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçɐ]) 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 “empfindlicher”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59076, 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]. empfindlicher is at rank #37,488, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçɐ].

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 59076, this pair ranks #838,251 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of empfindliche vs empfindlicher

Shared letters: cdefhilmnp. Private to "empfindliche": -. Private to "empfindlicher": r.

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

Known mistypes of this pair

  • empfindliche ← emfpindliche · emmpfindliche · empffindliche · empfidnliche · empfinddliche · empfindilche · empfindlcihe · empfindlicche
  • empfindlicher ← emfpindlicher · emmpfindlicher · empffindlicher · empfidnlicher · empfinddlicher · empfindilcher · empfindlciher · empfindliccher

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "empfindliche" for "empfindlicher" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçə] versus [ɛmˈp͡fɪntlɪçɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "empfindliche" or "empfindlicher"?
"empfindliche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,588 in our German list, against #37,488 for "empfindlicher". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "empfindliche" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "empfindlicher" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #838,251 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "empfindliche" and "empfindlicher" 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 #838,251 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