Which to use
“persönlich” and “persönliche” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,305
- “persönlich” frequency rank
- #2,035
- “persönliche” frequency rank
- 3340
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | persönlich | persönliche |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | von einer Person (direkt) stammend | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs persönlich |
Where the eye mixes persönlich and persönliche
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. persönlich runs 10 letters (CVCCVCCVCC) against persönliche's 11 (CVCCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses persönlich with persönliche
A purely visual mix-up. persönlich ([pɛʁˈzøːnlɪç]) and persönliche ([pɛʁˈzøːnlɪçə]) 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) - “persönlich” sits inside “persönliche”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3340, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
persönlich is recorded at frequency rank #1,305, classified as anadj, pronounced [pɛʁˈzøːnlɪç]. persönliche is at rank #2,035, tagged as anadj, pronounced [pɛʁˈzøːnlɪçə].
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 3340, this pair ranks #2,000,416 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of persönlich vs persönliche
Shared letters: cehilnprsö. Private to "persönlich": -. Private to "persönliche": -.
"persönlich" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCC · "persönliche" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "persönlich" and "persönliche" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "persönlich" or "persönliche" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "persönlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "persönliche" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,000,416 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "persönlich" and "persönliche" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "persönliche vs persönlichem". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #2,000,416 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.