existierenvsexistierendeWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: existieren is a verb, existierende is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“existieren” is a verb and “existierende” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#3,578
“existieren” frequency rank
#19,900
“existierende” frequency rank
23478
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature existieren existierende
Definition da sein, vorhanden sein, ein Teil der Realität sein Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs existierend

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set existieren and existierende apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
existieren
12 ch
existierende

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: existieren is [ˌɛksɪsˈtiːʁən] while existierende is [ˌɛksɪsˈtiːʁəndə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “existieren” sits inside “existierende”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23478, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

existieren is recorded at frequency rank #3,578, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌɛksɪsˈtiːʁən]. existierende is at rank #19,900, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌɛksɪsˈtiːʁəndə].

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 23478, this pair ranks #1,860,794 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of existieren vs existierende

Shared letters: einrstx. Private to "existieren": -. Private to "existierende": d.

"existieren" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVVCVC  ·  "existierende" · 12 letters · shape VCVCCVVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • existiereneixstieren · exisiteren · exisstieren · existeiren · existieern · existierenn · existierne · existierren
  • existierendeeixstierende · exisiterende · exisstierende · existeirende · existieernde · existieredne · existierendde · existierened

Frequency comparison

existieren#3,578
existierende#19,900

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "existieren" and "existierende" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "existieren" is a verb and "existierende" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "existieren" or "existierende"?
"existieren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,578 in our German list, against #19,900 for "existierende". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering existieren vs existierende

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “existieren”; for an adjective, it's “existierende”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “existieren” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list