Which to use
“erstaunlich” and “erstaunlichen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,813
- “erstaunlich” frequency rank
- #28,178
- “erstaunlichen” frequency rank
- 31991
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erstaunlich | erstaunlichen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ungewöhnlich und dabei etwas anderes erwartend, dabei ein (leichtes) Staunen oder ein Gefühl des Befremdens auslösend | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erstaunlich |
Where the eye mixes erstaunlich and erstaunlichen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. erstaunlich runs 11 letters (VCCCVVCCVCC) against erstaunlichen's 13 (VCCCVVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between erstaunlich and erstaunlichen
A purely visual mix-up. erstaunlich ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪç]) and erstaunlichen ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçn̩]) 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) - “erstaunlich” sits inside “erstaunlichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31991, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erstaunlich is recorded at frequency rank #3,813, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪç]. erstaunlichen is at rank #28,178, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçn̩].
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 31991, this pair ranks #1,717,036 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erstaunlich vs erstaunlichen
Shared letters: acehilnrstu. Private to "erstaunlich": -. Private to "erstaunlichen": -.
"erstaunlich" · 11 letters · shape VCCCVVCCVCC · "erstaunlichen" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- erstaunlich ← errstaunlich · ersatunlich · ersstaunlich · erstanulich · erstaulnich · erstaunilch · erstaunlcih · erstaunlicch
- erstaunlichen ← errstaunlichen · ersatunlichen · ersstaunlichen · erstanulichen · erstaulnichen · erstaunilchen · erstaunlcihen · erstaunlicchen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erstaunlich" for "erstaunlichen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "erstaunlich" or "erstaunlichen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "erstaunlich" and "erstaunlichen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "erstaunlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erstaunlichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,717,036 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erstaunlich" and "erstaunlichen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erstaunlichen vs erstaunliches". 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 #1,717,036 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.