herzlichvsherzlicheConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#3,049
“herzlich” frequency rank
#17,030
“herzliche” frequency rank
20079
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature herzlich herzliche
Definition freundlich gesinnt Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs herzlich

Where the eye mixes herzlich and herzliche

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. herzlich runs 8 letters (CVCCCVCC) against herzliche's 9 (CVCCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
herzlich
9 ch
herzliche

Look-alike desk: herzlich vs herzliche

A purely visual mix-up. herzlich ([ˈhɛʁt͡slɪç]) and herzliche ([ˈhɛʁt͡slɪçə]) 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) - “herzlich” sits inside “herzliche”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20079, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

herzlich is recorded at frequency rank #3,049, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈhɛʁt͡slɪç]. herzliche is at rank #17,030, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈhɛʁt͡slɪçə].

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 20079, this pair ranks #1,901,519 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of herzlich vs herzliche

Shared letters: cehilrz. Private to "herzlich": -. Private to "herzliche": -.

"herzlich" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCC  ·  "herzliche" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • herzlich ← ehrzlich · herlzich · herrzlich · herzilch · herzlcih · herzlicch · herzlichh · herzlihc
  • herzliche ← ehrzliche · herlziche · herrzliche · herzilche · herzlcihe · herzlicche · herzliceh · herzlichhe

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "herzlich" and "herzliche" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhɛʁt͡slɪç] versus [ˈhɛʁt͡slɪçə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "herzlich" vs "herzliche" - which ranks higher?
"herzlich" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,049 in our German list, against #17,030 for "herzliche". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "herzlich" and "herzliche" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "herzlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "herzliche" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,901,519 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "herzlich" and "herzliche" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "herrlichem vs herzliche". 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 #1,901,519 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list