übertriebenvsübertriebeneWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,385
“übertrieben” frequency rank
#28,041
“übertriebene” frequency rank
34426
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature übertrieben übertriebene
Definition viel mehr als nötig; zu viel Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs übertrieben

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set übertrieben and übertriebene apart are highlighted. They share 11 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

11 ch
übertrieben
12 ch
übertriebene

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. übertrieben ([ˌyːbɐˈtʁiːbn̩]) and übertriebene ([ˌyːbɐˈtʁiːbənə]) 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) - “übertrieben” sits inside “übertriebene”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34426, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

übertrieben is recorded at frequency rank #6,385, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈtʁiːbn̩]. übertriebene is at rank #28,041, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈtʁiːbənə].

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 34426, this pair ranks #1,663,597 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of übertrieben vs übertriebene

Shared letters: beinrtü. Private to "übertrieben": -. Private to "übertriebene": -.

"übertrieben" · 11 letters · shape VCVCCCVVCVC  ·  "übertriebene" · 12 letters · shape VCVCCCVVCVCV

Frequency comparison

übertrieben#6,385
übertriebene#28,041

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "übertrieben" and "übertriebene" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˌyːbɐˈtʁiːbn̩] versus [ˌyːbɐˈtʁiːbənə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "übertrieben" or "übertriebene"?
"übertrieben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,385 in our German list, against #28,041 for "übertriebene". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering übertrieben vs übertriebene

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 “übertrieben” 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