Which to use
“Ester” is a noun and “extern” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #35,172
- “Ester” frequency rank
- #26,863
- “extern” frequency rank
- 62035
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Ester | extern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Reaktionsprodukt einer Veresterung; Verknüpfung eines Alkohols mit einer Säure | außerhalb eines bestimmten implizit mitdefinierten Bezugsystems |
Where the eye mixes Ester and extern
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Ester with extern
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Ester is [ˈɛstɐ] while extern is [ˌɛksˈtɛʁn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62035, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Ester is recorded at frequency rank #35,172, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈɛstɐ]. extern is at rank #26,863, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌɛksˈtɛʁn].
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 62035, this pair ranks #727,584 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Ester vs extern
Shared letters: ert. Private to "Ester": s. Private to "extern": nx.
"Ester" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "extern" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Ester" and "extern" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Ester" vs "extern" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Ester" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "extern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #727,584 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Ester" and "extern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Easter vs Ester". 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 #727,584 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.