Which to use
“Ernst” and “Ernstes” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #531
- “Ernst” frequency rank
- #10,647
- “Ernstes” frequency rank
- 11178
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Ernst | Ernstes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | scherzlose, überlegte und entschiedene Gesinnung; sachlich, aufrichtige Haltung | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Ernst |
Where the eye mixes Ernst and Ernstes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Ernst vs Ernstes
A purely visual mix-up. Ernst ([ɛʁnst]) and Ernstes ([ˈɛʁnstəs]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “Ernst” sits inside “Ernstes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11178, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Ernst is recorded at frequency rank #531, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛʁnst]. Ernstes is at rank #10,647, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɛʁnstəs].
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 11178, this pair ranks #1,971,275 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Ernst vs Ernstes
Shared letters: enrst. Private to "Ernst": -. Private to "Ernstes": -.
"Ernst" · 5 letters · shape VCCCC · "Ernstes" · 7 letters · shape VCCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Ernst" and "Ernstes" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Ernst" or "Ernstes"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Ernst" and "Ernstes" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Ernst" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Ernstes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,971,275 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Ernst" and "Ernstes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erneutes vs Ernstes". 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 #1,971,275 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.