glücklichevsglücklichenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“glückliche” and “glücklichen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#7,769
“glückliche” frequency rank
#9,560
“glücklichen” frequency rank
17329
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature glückliche glücklichen
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs glücklich Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs glücklich

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set glückliche and glücklichen apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
glückliche
11 ch
glücklichen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. glückliche ([ˈɡlʏklɪçə]) and glücklichen ([ˈɡlʏklɪçn̩]) 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) - “glückliche” sits inside “glücklichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17329, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

glückliche is recorded at frequency rank #7,769, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɡlʏklɪçə]. glücklichen is at rank #9,560, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈɡlʏklɪçn̩].

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 17329, this pair ranks #1,928,338 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of glückliche vs glücklichen

Shared letters: ceghiklü. Private to "glückliche": -. Private to "glücklichen": n.

"glückliche" · 10 letters · shape CCVCCCVCCV  ·  "glücklichen" · 11 letters · shape CCVCCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

glückliche#7,769
glücklichen#9,560

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "glückliche" and "glücklichen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɡlʏklɪçə] versus [ˈɡlʏklɪçn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "glückliche" or "glücklichen"?
"glückliche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,769 in our German list, against #9,560 for "glücklichen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering glückliche vs glücklichen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “glückliche” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list