Which to use
“unterstrich” and “unterstrichen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,385
- “unterstrich” frequency rank
- #22,187
- “unterstrichen” frequency rank
- 51572
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | unterstrich | unterstrichen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs unterstreichen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs unterstreichen |
Where the eye mixes unterstrich and unterstrichen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. unterstrich runs 11 letters (VCCVCCCCVCC) against unterstrichen's 13 (VCCVCCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: unterstrich vs unterstrichen
A purely visual mix-up. unterstrich ([ˌʊntɐˈʃtʁɪç]) and unterstrichen ([ʊntɐˈʃtʁɪçn̩]) 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) - “unterstrich” sits inside “unterstrichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51572, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
unterstrich is recorded at frequency rank #29,385, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈʃtʁɪç]. unterstrichen is at rank #22,187, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʊntɐˈʃtʁɪçn̩].
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 51572, this pair ranks #1,130,330 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of unterstrich vs unterstrichen
Shared letters: cehinrstu. Private to "unterstrich": -. Private to "unterstrichen": -.
"unterstrich" · 11 letters · shape VCCVCCCCVCC · "unterstrichen" · 13 letters · shape VCCVCCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- unterstrich ← nuterstrich · unetrstrich · unnterstrich · unterrstrich · untersrtich · untersstrich · unterstirch · unterstrcih
- unterstrichen ← nuterstrichen · unetrstrichen · unnterstrichen · unterrstrichen · untersrtichen · untersstrichen · unterstirchen · unterstrcihen
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "unterstrich" and "unterstrichen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "unterstrich" or "unterstrichen" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "unterstrich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "unterstrichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,130,330 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "unterstrich" and "unterstrichen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "unterstreicht vs unterstrich". 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 #1,130,330 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.