ordentlichvsordentlichenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#2,850
“ordentlich” frequency rank
#7,373
“ordentlichen” frequency rank
10223
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ordentlich ordentlichen
Definition aufgeräumt und geordnet Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs ordentlich

Where the eye mixes ordentlich and ordentlichen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. ordentlich runs 10 letters (VCCVCCCVCC) against ordentlichen's 12 (VCCVCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

10 ch
ordentlich
12 ch
ordentlichen

Look-alike desk: ordentlich vs ordentlichen

A purely visual mix-up. ordentlich ([ˈɔʁdn̩tlɪç]) and ordentlichen ([ˈɔʁdn̩tlɪçn̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “ordentlich” sits inside “ordentlichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10223, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ordentlich is recorded at frequency rank #2,850, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɔʁdn̩tlɪç]. ordentlichen is at rank #7,373, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈɔʁdn̩tlɪçn̩].

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 10223, this pair ranks #1,976,175 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of ordentlich vs ordentlichen

Shared letters: cdehilnort. Private to "ordentlich": -. Private to "ordentlichen": -.

"ordentlich" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCCVCC  ·  "ordentlichen" · 12 letters · shape VCCVCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • ordentlichodrentlich · orddentlich · ordenltich · ordenntlich · ordentilch · ordentlcih · ordentlicch · ordentlichh
  • ordentlichenodrentlichen · orddentlichen · ordenltichen · ordenntlichen · ordentilchen · ordentlcihen · ordentlicchen · ordentlicehn

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ordentlich" and "ordentlichen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɔʁdn̩tlɪç] versus [ˈɔʁdn̩tlɪçn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "ordentlich" or "ordentlichen" show up more?
"ordentlich" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,850 in our German list, against #7,373 for "ordentlichen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ordentlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ordentlichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,976,175 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ordentlich" and "ordentlichen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ordentlichen vs ordentlicher". 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 #1,976,175 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