sexuellevssexuellerTell them apart

Which to use

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

#5,308
“sexuelle” frequency rank
#11,520
“sexueller” frequency rank
16828
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sexuelle sexueller
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs sexuell Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs sexuell

Where the eye mixes sexuelle and sexueller

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. sexuelle runs 8 letters (CVCVVCCV) against sexueller's 9 (CVCVVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
sexuelle
9 ch
sexueller

Why the eye confuses sexuelle with sexueller

A purely visual mix-up. sexuelle ([sɛksuˈɛlə]) and sexueller ([sɛksuˈɛlɐ]) 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) - “sexuelle” sits inside “sexueller”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16828, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sexuelle is recorded at frequency rank #5,308, classified as anadj, pronounced [sɛksuˈɛlə]. sexueller is at rank #11,520, tagged as anadj, pronounced [sɛksuˈɛlɐ].

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 16828, this pair ranks #1,932,694 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of sexuelle vs sexueller

Shared letters: elsux. Private to "sexuelle": -. Private to "sexueller": r.

"sexuelle" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCCV  ·  "sexueller" · 9 letters · shape CVCVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sexuelle ← esxuelle · seuxelle · sexeulle · sexuele · sexuelel · sexulele · sexxuelle · ssexuelle
  • sexueller ← esxueller · seuxeller · sexeuller · sexuelelr · sexueler · sexuellerr · sexuellre · sexuleler

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "sexuelle" for "sexueller" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([sɛksuˈɛlə] versus [sɛksuˈɛlɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "sexuelle" or "sexueller"?
"sexuelle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,308 in our German list, against #11,520 for "sexueller". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "sexuelle" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "sexueller" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,932,694 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sexuelle" and "sexueller" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sexuellem vs sexueller". 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 #1,932,694 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