Which to use
“selbstständige” and “selbstständigen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,750
- “selbstständige” frequency rank
- #17,128
- “selbstständigen” frequency rank
- 28878
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | selbstständige | selbstständigen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs selbstständig | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs selbstständig |
Where the eye mixes selbstständige and selbstständigen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 14 letters in sequence. selbstständige runs 14 letters (CVCCCCCCVCCVCV) against selbstständigen's 15 (CVCCCCCCVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: selbstständige vs selbstständigen
A purely visual mix-up. selbstständige ([ˈzɛlpstʃtɛndɪɡə]) and selbstständigen ([ˈzɛlpstʃtɛndɪɡn̩]) 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) - “selbstständige” sits inside “selbstständigen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28878, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
selbstständige is recorded at frequency rank #11,750, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɛlpstʃtɛndɪɡə]. selbstständigen is at rank #17,128, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɛlpstʃtɛndɪɡn̩].
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 28878, this pair ranks #1,776,966 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of selbstständige vs selbstständigen
Shared letters: bdegilnstä. Private to "selbstständige": -. Private to "selbstständigen": -.
"selbstständige" · 14 letters · shape CVCCCCCCVCCVCV · "selbstständigen" · 15 letters · shape CVCCCCCCVCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "selbstständige" for "selbstständigen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "selbstständige" or "selbstständigen" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "selbstständige" and "selbstständigen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "selbstständige" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "selbstständigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,776,966 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "selbstständige" and "selbstständigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "selbstständigen vs selbstständiges". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,776,966 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.