fünftzehnte

Fünftzehnte is a form that is not recognized as standard German. It is generally considered a misspelling or typographical error for fünfzehnte, which denotes the fifteenth element in a sequence. In contemporary German, the ordinal for the number fifteen is formed from the base fünfzehn with the appropriate ordinal ending, and fünfzehnte is the form that appears in dictionaries and style guidance.

The appearance of fünfte? and fünftzehnte is typically limited to nonstandard writing, typographical slips, or historical texts. There is no separate, widely accepted meaning or usage for fünftzehnte beyond being treated as an erroneous variant of fünfzehnte. When encountered in edited text, it is usually corrected to fünfzehnte or declined according to the noun it modifies, as with other ordinals.

Etymologically, the intended root is fünfzehn (fifteen), with the standard ordinal suffix -te, yielding fünfzehnte. Spelling variations with insertions or misplacements of consonants reflect ordinary orthographic variation seen in earlier periods or in quick handwriting, rather than a distinct lexical item. Modern German orthography, including guidance from major reference works, treats fünftzehnte as incorrect in ordinary usage.

In summary, fünftzehnte has no separate status in modern German. It is best understood as a nonstandard variant of fünfzehnte, the fifteenth ordinal, and should be corrected in formal writing. See also German ordinal numbers and German spelling conventions for guidance on correct forms.