Which to use
“schrecklich” and “schrecklicher” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,646
- “schrecklich” frequency rank
- #27,478
- “schrecklicher” frequency rank
- 32124
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schrecklich | schrecklicher |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (Angst und) Schrecken, Entsetzen auslösend | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs schrecklich |
Where the eye mixes schrecklich and schrecklicher
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. schrecklich runs 11 letters (CCCCVCCCVCC) against schrecklicher's 13 (CCCCVCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between schrecklich and schrecklicher
A purely visual mix-up. schrecklich ([ˈʃʁɛklɪç]) and schrecklicher ([ˈʃʁɛklɪçɐ]) 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) - “schrecklich” sits inside “schrecklicher”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32124, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schrecklich is recorded at frequency rank #4,646, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃʁɛklɪç]. schrecklicher is at rank #27,478, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃʁɛklɪçɐ].
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 32124, this pair ranks #1,714,206 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schrecklich vs schrecklicher
Shared letters: cehiklrs. Private to "schrecklich": -. Private to "schrecklicher": -.
"schrecklich" · 11 letters · shape CCCCVCCCVCC · "schrecklicher" · 13 letters · shape CCCCVCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- schrecklich ← cshrecklich · scchrecklich · schercklich · schhrecklich · schrceklich · schreccklich · schreckilch · schreckklich
- schrecklicher ← cshrecklicher · scchrecklicher · schercklicher · schhrecklicher · schrceklicher · schreccklicher · schreckilcher · schreckklicher
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "schrecklich" and "schrecklicher" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "schrecklich" or "schrecklicher" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "schrecklich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schrecklicher" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,714,206 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schrecklich" and "schrecklicher" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schrecklicher vs schreckliches". 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 #1,714,206 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.