Which to use
“gefährlich” and “gefährlicher” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,108
- “gefährlich” frequency rank
- #7,476
- “gefährlicher” frequency rank
- 9584
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gefährlich | gefährlicher |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit Gefahr, Risiko verbunden | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs gefährlich |
Where the eye mixes gefährlich and gefährlicher
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. gefährlich runs 10 letters (CVCVCCCVCC) against gefährlicher's 12 (CVCVCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: gefährlich vs gefährlicher
A purely visual mix-up. gefährlich ([ɡəˈfɛːɐ̯lɪç]) and gefährlicher ([ɡəˈfɛːɐ̯lɪçɐ]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “gefährlich” sits inside “gefährlicher”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9584, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gefährlich is recorded at frequency rank #2,108, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈfɛːɐ̯lɪç]. gefährlicher is at rank #7,476, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈfɛːɐ̯lɪçɐ].
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 9584, this pair ranks #1,979,265 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gefährlich vs gefährlicher
Shared letters: cefghilrä. Private to "gefährlich": -. Private to "gefährlicher": -.
"gefährlich" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCCVCC · "gefährlicher" · 12 letters · shape CVCVCCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "gefährlich" for "gefährlicher" ever safe?
Which is more common, "gefährlich" or "gefährlicher"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "gefährlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gefährlicher" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,979,265 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gefährlich" and "gefährlicher" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gefährlicher vs gefährliches". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,979,265 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.