Which to use
“mögliche” is an adjective and “möglichst” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,311
- “mögliche” frequency rank
- #1,303
- “möglichst” frequency rank
- 3614
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mögliche | möglichst |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs möglich | so gut, so schnell, so groß und Ähnliches sich etwas einrichten/machen lässt |
Where the eye mixes mögliche and möglichst
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. mögliche runs 8 letters (CVCCVCCV) against möglichst's 9 (CVCCVCCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between mögliche and möglichst
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mögliche is [ˈmøːklɪçə] while möglichst is [ˈmøːklɪçst]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3614, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mögliche is recorded at frequency rank #2,311, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈmøːklɪçə]. möglichst is at rank #1,303, tagged as anadv, pronounced [ˈmøːklɪçst].
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 3614, this pair ranks #1,999,788 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of mögliche vs möglichst
Shared letters: cghilmö. Private to "mögliche": e. Private to "möglichst": st.
"mögliche" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV · "möglichst" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "mögliche" for "möglichst" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "mögliche" or "möglichst" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mögliche" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "möglichst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,999,788 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mögliche" and "möglichst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mögliche vs mögliches". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,999,788 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.