erstaunlichervserstaunlichesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#29,564
“erstaunlicher” frequency rank
#42,472
“erstaunliches” frequency rank
72036
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erstaunlicher erstaunliches
Definition Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erstaunlich Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erstaunlich

Where the spellings diverge

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

13 ch
erstaunlicher
13 ch
erstaunliches

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. erstaunlicher ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçɐ]) and erstaunliches ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçəs]) 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 a single letter - r in “erstaunlicher” becomes s in “erstaunliches”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72036, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erstaunlicher is recorded at frequency rank #29,564, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçɐ]. erstaunliches is at rank #42,472, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçəs].

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 72036, this pair ranks #399,659 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of erstaunlicher vs erstaunliches

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

"erstaunlicher" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVVCCVCCVC  ·  "erstaunliches" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erstaunlichererrstaunlicher · ersatunlicher · ersstaunlicher · erstanulicher · erstaulnicher · erstaunilcher · erstaunlciher · erstaunliccher
  • erstaunlicheserrstaunliches · ersatunliches · ersstaunliches · erstanuliches · erstaulniches · erstaunilches · erstaunlcihes · erstaunlicches

Frequency comparison

erstaunlicher#29,564
erstaunliches#42,472

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erstaunlicher" and "erstaunliches" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçɐ] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nlɪçəs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "erstaunlicher" or "erstaunliches"?
"erstaunlicher" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,564 in our German list, against #42,472 for "erstaunliches". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering erstaunlicher vs erstaunliches

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 “erstaunlicher” 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