Which to use
“übelste” and “übelsten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,478
- “übelste” frequency rank
- #41,610
- “übelsten” frequency rank
- 76088
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | übelste | übelsten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Superlativs des Adjektivs übel | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Superlativs des Adjektivs übel |
Where the eye mixes übelste and übelsten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. übelste runs 7 letters (VCVCCCV) against übelsten's 8 (VCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses übelste with übelsten
A purely visual mix-up. übelste ([ˈyːbl̩stə]) and übelsten ([ˈyːbl̩stn̩]) 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) - “übelste” sits inside “übelsten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 76088, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
übelste is recorded at frequency rank #34,478, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈyːbl̩stə]. übelsten is at rank #41,610, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈyːbl̩stn̩].
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 76088, this pair ranks #292,063 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of übelste vs übelsten
Shared letters: belstü. Private to "übelste": -. Private to "übelsten": n.
"übelste" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCCV · "übelsten" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "übelste" and "übelsten" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "übelste" or "übelsten" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "übelste" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "übelsten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #292,063 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "übelste" and "übelsten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "übelst vs übelsten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #292,063 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.