Which to use
“gebräuchlich” and “gebräuchliche” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,886
- “gebräuchlich” frequency rank
- #38,124
- “gebräuchliche” frequency rank
- 65010
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gebräuchlich | gebräuchliche |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | im Gebrauch; im gegenwärtigen Gebrauch befindlich; in bestimmter Häufigkeit verwendet | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs gebräuchlich |
Where the eye mixes gebräuchlich and gebräuchliche
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 12 letters in sequence. gebräuchlich runs 12 letters (CVCCVVCCCVCC) against gebräuchliche's 13 (CVCCVVCCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses gebräuchlich with gebräuchliche
A purely visual mix-up. gebräuchlich ([ɡəˈbʁɔɪ̯çlɪç]) and gebräuchliche ([ɡəˈbʁɔɪ̯çlɪçə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “gebräuchlich” sits inside “gebräuchliche”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65010, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gebräuchlich is recorded at frequency rank #26,886, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈbʁɔɪ̯çlɪç]. gebräuchliche is at rank #38,124, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈbʁɔɪ̯çlɪçə].
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 65010, this pair ranks #621,638 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of gebräuchlich vs gebräuchliche
Shared letters: bceghilruä. Private to "gebräuchlich": -. Private to "gebräuchliche": -.
"gebräuchlich" · 12 letters · shape CVCCVVCCCVCC · "gebräuchliche" · 13 letters · shape CVCCVVCCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "gebräuchlich" for "gebräuchliche" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "gebräuchlich" or "gebräuchliche" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "gebräuchlich" and "gebräuchliche" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "gebräuchlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gebräuchliche" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #621,638 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gebräuchlich" and "gebräuchliche" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gebräuchliche vs gebräuchlichen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #621,638 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.