staatlichvsstaatlicherWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#7,533
“staatlich” frequency rank
#9,984
“staatlicher” frequency rank
17517
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature staatlich staatlicher
Definition den Staat betreffend, auf den Staat bezogen Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs staatlich

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set staatlich and staatlicher apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
staatlich
11 ch
staatlicher

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. staatlich ([ˈʃtaːtlɪç]) and staatlicher ([ˈʃtaːtlɪçɐ]) 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) - “staatlich” sits inside “staatlicher”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17517, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

staatlich is recorded at frequency rank #7,533, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃtaːtlɪç]. staatlicher is at rank #9,984, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃtaːtlɪçɐ].

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 17517, this pair ranks #1,926,687 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of staatlich vs staatlicher

Shared letters: achilst. Private to "staatlich": -. Private to "staatlicher": er.

"staatlich" · 9 letters · shape CCVVCCVCC  ·  "staatlicher" · 11 letters · shape CCVVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • staatlichsatatlich · sstaatlich · staaltich · staatilch · staatlcih · staatlicch · staatlichh · staatlihc
  • staatlichersatatlicher · sstaatlicher · staalticher · staatilcher · staatlciher · staatliccher · staatlicehr · staatlicherr

Frequency comparison

staatlich#7,533
staatlicher#9,984

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "staatlich" and "staatlicher" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃtaːtlɪç] versus [ˈʃtaːtlɪçɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "staatlich" or "staatlicher"?
"staatlich" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,533 in our German list, against #9,984 for "staatlicher". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering staatlich vs staatlicher

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “staatlich” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list