bedecktevsbedenkeWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: bedeckte is a adjective, bedenke is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“bedeckte” is an adjective and “bedenke” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#39,826
“bedeckte” frequency rank
#20,849
“bedenke” frequency rank
60675
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bedeckte bedenke
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs bedeckt 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bedenken

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bedeckte and bedenke apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
bedeckte
7 ch
bedenke

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bedeckte is [bəˈdɛktə] while bedenke is [bəˈdɛŋkə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60675, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bedeckte is recorded at frequency rank #39,826, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈdɛktə]. bedenke is at rank #20,849, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈdɛŋkə].

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 60675, this pair ranks #778,127 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of bedeckte vs bedenke

Shared letters: bdek. Private to "bedeckte": ct. Private to "bedenke": n.

"bedeckte" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCCV  ·  "bedenke" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bedecktebbedeckte · bdeeckte · bedcekte · beddeckte · bedecckte · bedecket · bedeckkte · bedecktte
  • bedenkebbedenke · bdeenke · beddenke · bedekne · bedenek · bedenkke · bedennke · bedneke

Frequency comparison

bedeckte#39,826
bedenke#20,849

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "bedeckte" and "bedenke" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "bedeckte" is an adjective and "bedenke" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "bedeckte" or "bedenke"?
"bedenke" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,849 in our German list, against #39,826 for "bedeckte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering bedeckte vs bedenke

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “bedeckte”; for a verb, it's “bedenke”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bedeckte” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list