Which to use
“väterliche” and “väterlichen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #44,354
- “väterliche” frequency rank
- #29,413
- “väterlichen” frequency rank
- 73767
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | väterliche | väterlichen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs väterlich | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs väterlich |
Where the eye mixes väterliche and väterlichen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. väterliche runs 10 letters (CVCVCCVCCV) against väterlichen's 11 (CVCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between väterliche and väterlichen
A purely visual mix-up. väterliche ([ˈfɛːtɐlɪçə]) and väterlichen ([ˈfɛːtɐlɪçn̩]) 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) - “väterliche” sits inside “väterlichen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73767, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
väterliche is recorded at frequency rank #44,354, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛːtɐlɪçə]. väterlichen is at rank #29,413, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛːtɐlɪçn̩].
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 73767, this pair ranks #351,486 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of väterliche vs väterlichen
Shared letters: cehilrtvä. Private to "väterliche": -. Private to "väterlichen": n.
"väterliche" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVCCV · "väterlichen" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "väterliche" and "väterlichen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "väterliche" or "väterlichen"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "väterliche" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "väterlichen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #351,486 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
Confusion rank #351,486 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.