nachfolgendvsNachfolgersConfusable pair

Quick tell: nachfolgend is a adjective, Nachfolgers is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“nachfolgend” is an adjective and “Nachfolgers” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,952
“nachfolgend” frequency rank
#35,930
“Nachfolgers” frequency rank
51882
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nachfolgend Nachfolgers
Definition unmittelbar anschließend; zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt geschehend Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Nachfolger

Where the eye mixes nachfolgend and Nachfolgers

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. nachfolgend and Nachfolgers follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

11 ch
nachfolgend
11 ch
Nachfolgers

Look-alike desk: nachfolgend vs Nachfolgers

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nachfolgend is [ˈnaːxˌfɔlɡn̩t] while Nachfolgers is [ˈnaːxˌfɔlɡɐs]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51882, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nachfolgend is recorded at frequency rank #15,952, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌfɔlɡn̩t]. Nachfolgers is at rank #35,930, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌfɔlɡɐs].

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 51882, this pair ranks #1,118,391 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of nachfolgend vs Nachfolgers

Shared letters: acefghlno. Private to "nachfolgend": d. Private to "Nachfolgers": rs.

"nachfolgend" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCC  ·  "Nachfolgers" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nachfolgend ← anchfolgend · nacchfolgend · nacfholgend · nachffolgend · nachflogend · nachfoglend · nachfolegnd · nachfolgedn
  • Nachfolgers ← anchfolgers · nacchfolgers · nacfholgers · nachffolgers · nachflogers · nachfoglers · nachfolegrs · nachfolgerrs

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "nachfolgend" for "Nachfolgers" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "nachfolgend" is an adjective and "Nachfolgers" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "nachfolgend" vs "Nachfolgers" - which ranks higher?
"nachfolgend" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,952 in our German list, against #35,930 for "Nachfolgers". 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 "nachfolgend" and "Nachfolgers" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "nachfolgend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Nachfolgers" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,118,391 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "nachfolgend" and "Nachfolgers" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Nachfolgern vs Nachfolgers". 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 #1,118,391 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