Which to use
“schnellste” is an adjective and “schnellstens” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,165
- “schnellste” frequency rank
- #30,276
- “schnellstens” frequency rank
- 40441
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schnellste | schnellstens |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Superlativs des Adjektivs schnell | so schnell wie möglich |
Where the eye mixes schnellste and schnellstens
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. schnellste runs 10 letters (CCCCVCCCCV) against schnellstens's 12 (CCCCVCCCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between schnellste and schnellstens
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: schnellste is [ˈʃnɛlstə] while schnellstens is [ˈʃnɛlstn̩s]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “schnellste” sits inside “schnellstens”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40441, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schnellste is recorded at frequency rank #10,165, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃnɛlstə]. schnellstens is at rank #30,276, tagged as anadv, pronounced [ˈʃnɛlstn̩s].
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 40441, this pair ranks #1,508,416 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of schnellste vs schnellstens
Shared letters: cehlnst. Private to "schnellste": -. Private to "schnellstens": -.
"schnellste" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVCCCCV · "schnellstens" · 12 letters · shape CCCCVCCCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- schnellste ← cshnellste · scchnellste · schenllste · schhnellste · schnellset · schnellsste · schnellstte · schnelltse
- schnellstens ← cshnellstens · scchnellstens · schenllstens · schhnellstens · schnellsetns · schnellsstens · schnellstenns · schnellstenss
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "schnellste" for "schnellstens" ever safe?
Which is more common, "schnellste" or "schnellstens"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "schnellste" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schnellstens" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,508,416 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schnellste" and "schnellstens" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schnellsten vs schnellstens". 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 #1,508,416 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.