Which to use
“liebsten” and “liebster” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,841
- “liebsten” frequency rank
- #21,341
- “liebster” frequency rank
- 24182
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | liebsten | liebster |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Superlativs des Adjektivs lieb | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Superlativs des Adjektivs lieb |
Where the eye mixes liebsten and liebster
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. liebsten and liebster follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVVCCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses liebsten with liebster
A purely visual mix-up. liebsten ([ˈliːpstn̩]) and liebster ([ˈliːpstɐ]) 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 a single letter - n in “liebsten” becomes r in “liebster”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24182, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
liebsten is recorded at frequency rank #2,841, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈliːpstn̩]. liebster is at rank #21,341, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈliːpstɐ].
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 24182, this pair ranks #1,851,237 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of liebsten vs liebster
Shared letters: beilst. Private to "liebsten": n. Private to "liebster": r.
"liebsten" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCCVC · "liebster" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "liebsten" for "liebster" ever safe?
Which is more common, "liebsten" or "liebster"?
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 "liebsten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "liebster" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,851,237 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "liebsten" and "liebster" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "liebster vs liebstes". 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 #1,851,237 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.