unmöglichevsunmöglichesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#22,544
“unmögliche” frequency rank
#48,575
“unmögliches” frequency rank
71119
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature unmögliche unmögliches
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs unmöglich Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs unmöglich

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set unmögliche and unmögliches apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
unmögliche
11 ch
unmögliches

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. unmögliche ([ˈʊnmøːklɪçə]) and unmögliches ([ˈʊnmøːklɪçəs]) 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) - “unmögliche” sits inside “unmögliches”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71119, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

unmögliche is recorded at frequency rank #22,544, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊnmøːklɪçə]. unmögliches is at rank #48,575, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊnmøːklɪçəs].

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 71119, this pair ranks #426,126 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of unmögliche vs unmögliches

Shared letters: ceghilmnuö. Private to "unmögliche": -. Private to "unmögliches": s.

"unmögliche" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCV  ·  "unmögliches" · 11 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

unmögliche#22,544
unmögliches#48,575

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "unmögliche" and "unmögliches" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʊnmøːklɪçə] versus [ˈʊnmøːklɪçəs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "unmögliche" or "unmögliches"?
"unmögliche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,544 in our German list, against #48,575 for "unmögliches". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering unmögliche vs unmögliches

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 “unmögliche” 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