Which to use
“farbig” is an adjective and “Farbige” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,245
- “farbig” frequency rank
- #15,084
- “Farbige” frequency rank
- 35329
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | farbig | Farbige |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit einer oder mehreren Farben versehen; nicht schwarz, weiß oder grau | weibliche Person, die einer Bevölkerungsgruppe angehört, deren Haut stark pigmentiert ist, im Gegensatz zum gering pigmentierten Menschentyp, der für Europa, Nordafrika und das westliche Asien charakteristisch ist |
Where the eye mixes farbig and Farbige
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses farbig with Farbige
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: farbig is [ˈfaʁbɪç] while Farbige is [ˈfaʁbɪɡə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “farbig” sits inside “Farbige”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35329, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
farbig is recorded at frequency rank #20,245, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfaʁbɪç]. Farbige is at rank #15,084, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfaʁbɪɡə].
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 35329, this pair ranks #1,642,588 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of farbig vs Farbige
Shared letters: abfgir. Private to "farbig": -. Private to "Farbige": e.
"farbig" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Farbige" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "farbig" for "Farbige" ever safe?
Which is more common, "farbig" or "Farbige"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "farbig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Farbige" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,642,588 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "farbig" and "Farbige" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Färber vs farbig". 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 #1,642,588 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.