Which to use
“unterschiedlich” and “unterschiedlichen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,087
- “unterschiedlich” frequency rank
- #2,221
- “unterschiedlichen” frequency rank
- 5308
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | unterschiedlich | unterschiedlichen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nach verschiedener Art, auf verschiedene Weise | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs unterschiedlich |
Where the eye mixes unterschiedlich and unterschiedlichen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 15 letters in sequence. unterschiedlich runs 15 letters (VCCVCCCCVVCCVCC) against unterschiedlichen's 17 (VCCVCCCCVVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses unterschiedlich with unterschiedlichen
A purely visual mix-up. unterschiedlich ([ˈʊntɐˌʃiːtlɪç]) and unterschiedlichen ([ˈʊntɐˌʃiːtlɪçn̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “unterschiedlich” sits inside “unterschiedlichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5308, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
unterschiedlich is recorded at frequency rank #3,087, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊntɐˌʃiːtlɪç]. unterschiedlichen is at rank #2,221, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊntɐˌʃiːtlɪçn̩].
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 5308, this pair ranks #1,995,173 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of unterschiedlich vs unterschiedlichen
Shared letters: cdehilnrstu. Private to "unterschiedlich": -. Private to "unterschiedlichen": -.
"unterschiedlich" · 15 letters · shape VCCVCCCCVVCCVCC · "unterschiedlichen" · 17 letters · shape VCCVCCCCVVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- unterschiedlich ← nuterschiedlich · unetrschiedlich · unnterschiedlich · untercshiedlich · unterrschiedlich · unterscchiedlich · unterscheidlich · unterschhiedlich
- unterschiedlichen ← nuterschiedlichen · unetrschiedlichen · unnterschiedlichen · untercshiedlichen · unterrschiedlichen · unterscchiedlichen · unterscheidlichen · unterschhiedlichen
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "unterschiedlich" and "unterschiedlichen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "unterschiedlich" vs "unterschiedlichen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "unterschiedlich" and "unterschiedlichen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "unterschiedlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "unterschiedlichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,995,173 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "unterschiedlich" and "unterschiedlichen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "unterschiedlich vs unterschiedliches". 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 #1,995,173 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.