anfängstvsanfängtWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,745
“anfängst” frequency rank
#7,858
“anfängt” frequency rank
34603
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature anfängst anfängt
Definition 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs anfangen 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs anfangen

Where the eye mixes anfängst and anfängt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. anfängst runs 8 letters (VCCVCCCC) against anfängt's 7 (VCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
anfängst
7 ch
anfängt

Visual trap between anfängst and anfängt

A purely visual mix-up. anfängst ([ˈanˌfɛŋst]) and anfängt ([ˈanˌfɛŋt]) 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 34603, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

anfängst is recorded at frequency rank #26,745, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌfɛŋst]. anfängt is at rank #7,858, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌfɛŋt].

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 34603, this pair ranks #1,659,494 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of anfängst vs anfängt

Shared letters: afgntä. Private to "anfängst": s. Private to "anfängt": -.

"anfängst" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCC  ·  "anfängt" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "anfängst" for "anfängt" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈanˌfɛŋst] versus [ˈanˌfɛŋt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "anfängst" or "anfängt"?
"anfängt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,858 in our German list, against #26,745 for "anfängst". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "anfängst" and "anfängt" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "anfängst" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "anfängt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,659,494 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "anfängst" and "anfängt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anfängst vs anfasst". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,659,494 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