schnellevsschnellsteTell them apart

Which to use

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

#3,072
“schnelle” frequency rank
#10,165
“schnellste” frequency rank
13237
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schnelle schnellste
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs schnell Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Superlativs des Adjektivs schnell

Where the eye mixes schnelle and schnellste

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. schnelle runs 8 letters (CCCCVCCV) against schnellste's 10 (CCCCVCCCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
schnelle
10 ch
schnellste

Look-alike desk: schnelle vs schnellste

A purely visual mix-up. schnelle ([ˈʃnɛlə]) and schnellste ([ˈʃnɛlstə]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13237, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schnelle is recorded at frequency rank #3,072, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃnɛlə]. schnellste is at rank #10,165, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃnɛlstə].

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 13237, this pair ranks #1,959,228 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of schnelle vs schnellste

Shared letters: cehlns. Private to "schnelle": -. Private to "schnellste": t.

"schnelle" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCCV  ·  "schnellste" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVCCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • schnellecshnelle · scchnelle · schenlle · schhnelle · schnele · schnelel · schnlele · schnnelle
  • schnellstecshnellste · scchnellste · schenllste · schhnellste · schnellset · schnellsste · schnellstte · schnelltse

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "schnelle" and "schnellste" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃnɛlə] versus [ˈʃnɛlstə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "schnelle" or "schnellste"?
"schnelle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,072 in our German list, against #10,165 for "schnellste". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "schnelle" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "schnellste" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,959,228 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "schnelle" and "schnellste" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schnelle vs Schnuller". 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 #1,959,228 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