Which to use
“sicher” is an adjective and “sichern” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #270
- “sicher” frequency rank
- #2,856
- “sichern” frequency rank
- 3126
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sicher | sichern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | vor Gefahren geschützt | etwas vor Gefahren oder Zugriff bewahren, etwas sicher machen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sicher and sichern apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
sicher and sichern form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “sicher” sits inside “sichern” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3126, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sicher is recorded at frequency rank #270, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɪçɐ]. sichern is at rank #2,856, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈzɪçɐn].
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 3126, this pair ranks #2,000,886 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sicher" and "sichern" be used interchangeably?
Remembering sicher vs sichern
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “sicher”; for a verb, it's “sichern”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sicher” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable