übrigenvsÜbungenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: übrigen is a adjective, Übungen is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“übrigen” is an adjective and “Übungen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,186
“übrigen” frequency rank
#6,264
“Übungen” frequency rank
8450
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature übrigen Übungen
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs übrig Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Übung

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set übrigen and Übungen apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
übrigen
7 ch
Übungen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: übrigen is [ˈyːbʁɪɡn̩] while Übungen is [ˈyːbʊŋən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8450, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

übrigen is recorded at frequency rank #2,186, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈyːbʁɪɡn̩]. Übungen is at rank #6,264, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈyːbʊŋən].

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 8450, this pair ranks #1,984,215 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of übrigen vs Übungen

Shared letters: begnü. Private to "übrigen": ir. Private to "Übungen": u.

"übrigen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "Übungen" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

übrigen#2,186
Übungen#6,264

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "übrigen" and "Übungen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "übrigen" is an adjective and "Übungen" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "übrigen" or "Übungen"?
"übrigen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,186 in our German list, against #6,264 for "Übungen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering übrigen vs Übungen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “übrigen”; for a noun, it's “Übungen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “übrigen” 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