Which to use
“expert” and “extern” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #27,282
- “expert” frequency rank
- #26,863
- “extern” frequency rank
- 54145
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | expert | extern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | wie ein Fachmann, von großer Erfahrung bestimmt | außerhalb eines bestimmten implizit mitdefinierten Bezugsystems |
Where the eye mixes expert and extern
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between expert and extern
A purely visual mix-up. expert ([ɛksˈpɛʁt]) and extern ([ˌɛksˈtɛʁn]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54145, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
expert is recorded at frequency rank #27,282, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛksˈpɛʁt]. 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 54145, this pair ranks #1,030,340 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of expert vs extern
Shared letters: ertx. Private to "expert": p. Private to "extern": n.
"expert" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC · "extern" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "expert" and "extern" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "expert" vs "extern" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "expert" 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 #1,030,340 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "expert" and "extern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Exoten vs extern". 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 #1,030,340 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.