Which to use
“extern” is an adjective and “extra” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #26,863
- “extern” frequency rank
- #1,767
- “extra” frequency rank
- 28630
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | extern | extra |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | außerhalb eines bestimmten implizit mitdefinierten Bezugsystems | außerdem, zusätzlich |
Where the eye mixes extern and extra
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: extern vs extra
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: extern is [ˌɛksˈtɛʁn] while extra is [ˈɛkstʁa]. 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 (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28630, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
extern is recorded at frequency rank #26,863, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˌɛksˈtɛʁn]. extra is at rank #1,767, tagged as anadv, pronounced [ˈɛkstʁa].
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 28630, this pair ranks #1,781,360 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of extern vs extra
Shared letters: ertx. Private to "extern": n. Private to "extra": a.
"extern" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC · "extra" · 5 letters · shape VCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "extern" and "extra" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "extern" or "extra" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "extern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "extra" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,781,360 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "extern" and "extra" 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 #1,781,360 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.