Which to use
“ungerecht” is an adjective and “Unrecht” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,382
- “ungerecht” frequency rank
- #3,691
- “Unrecht” frequency rank
- 14073
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ungerecht | Unrecht |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht gerecht, dem Recht und Rechtsempfinden zuwiderlaufend | Verletzung des Rechts |
Where the eye mixes ungerecht and Unrecht
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. ungerecht runs 9 letters (VCCVCVCCC) against Unrecht's 7 (VCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ungerecht with Unrecht
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ungerecht is [ˈʊnɡəˌʁɛçt] while Unrecht is [ˈʊnˌʁɛçt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14073, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ungerecht is recorded at frequency rank #10,382, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊnɡəˌʁɛçt]. Unrecht is at rank #3,691, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʊnˌʁɛçt].
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 14073, this pair ranks #1,953,735 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ungerecht vs Unrecht
Shared letters: cehnrtu. Private to "ungerecht": g. Private to "Unrecht": -.
"ungerecht" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCCC · "Unrecht" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ungerecht" for "Unrecht" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ungerecht" or "Unrecht"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ungerecht" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Unrecht" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,953,735 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ungerecht" and "Unrecht" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ungerecht vs ungerechte". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,953,735 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.