VorgängerinvsVorgängersWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#42,247
“Vorgängerin” frequency rank
#26,682
“Vorgängers” frequency rank
68929
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Vorgängerin Vorgängers
Definition weibliche Person, die jemandes Amt, Stellung oder Ähnliches zuvor innehatte Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Vorgänger

Where the eye mixes Vorgängerin and Vorgängers

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.

11 ch
Vorgängerin
10 ch
Vorgängers

Why the eye confuses Vorgängerin with Vorgängers

A purely visual mix-up. Vorgängerin ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡɛŋəʁɪn]) and Vorgängers ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡɛŋɐs]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 68929, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Vorgängerin is recorded at frequency rank #42,247, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡɛŋəʁɪn]. Vorgängers is at rank #26,682, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡɛŋɐs].

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 68929, this pair ranks #492,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Vorgängerin vs Vorgängers

Shared letters: egnorvä. Private to "Vorgängerin": i. Private to "Vorgängers": s.

"Vorgängerin" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCVC  ·  "Vorgängers" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Vorgängerin" and "Vorgängers" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡɛŋəʁɪn] versus [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡɛŋɐs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Vorgängerin" or "Vorgängers" show up more?
"Vorgängers" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,682 in our German list, against #42,247 for "Vorgängerin". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Vorgängerin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Vorgängers" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #492,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Vorgängerin" and "Vorgängers" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Vorgängers vs Vorgangs". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #492,414 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list