Which to use
“optische” and “optischer” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,495
- “optische” frequency rank
- #34,291
- “optischer” frequency rank
- 45786
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | optische | optischer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs optisch | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs optisch |
Where the eye mixes optische and optischer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: optische vs optischer
A purely visual mix-up. optische ([ˈɔptɪʃə]) and optischer ([ˈɔptɪʃɐ]) 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) - “optische” sits inside “optischer”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45786, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
optische is recorded at frequency rank #11,495, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɔptɪʃə]. optischer is at rank #34,291, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈɔptɪʃɐ].
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 45786, this pair ranks #1,341,266 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of optische vs optischer
Shared letters: cehiopst. Private to "optische": -. Private to "optischer": r.
"optische" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV · "optischer" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "optische" for "optischer" ever safe?
Which is more common, "optische" or "optischer"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "optische" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "optischer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,341,266 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "optische" and "optischer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "optischer vs optisches". 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 #1,341,266 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.