erstaunlichevserstaunlicherWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#13,355
“erstaunliche” frequency rank
#29,564
“erstaunlicher” frequency rank
42919
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erstaunliche erstaunlicher
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erstaunlich Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erstaunlich

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set erstaunliche and erstaunlicher apart are highlighted. They share 12 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

12 ch
erstaunliche
13 ch
erstaunlicher

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. erstaunliche ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçə]) and erstaunlicher ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçɐ]) 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) - “erstaunliche” sits inside “erstaunlicher”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42919, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erstaunliche is recorded at frequency rank #13,355, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçə]. erstaunlicher is at rank #29,564, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçɐ].

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 42919, this pair ranks #1,434,331 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of erstaunliche vs erstaunlicher

Shared letters: acehilnrstu. Private to "erstaunliche": -. Private to "erstaunlicher": -.

"erstaunliche" · 12 letters · shape VCCCVVCCVCCV  ·  "erstaunlicher" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erstaunlicheerrstaunliche · ersatunliche · ersstaunliche · erstanuliche · erstaulniche · erstaunilche · erstaunlcihe · erstaunlicche
  • erstaunlichererrstaunlicher · ersatunlicher · ersstaunlicher · erstanulicher · erstaulnicher · erstaunilcher · erstaunlciher · erstaunliccher

Frequency comparison

erstaunliche#13,355
erstaunlicher#29,564

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erstaunliche" and "erstaunlicher" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçə] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "erstaunliche" or "erstaunlicher"?
"erstaunliche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,355 in our German list, against #29,564 for "erstaunlicher". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering erstaunliche vs erstaunlicher

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “erstaunliche” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list