Which to use
“brauche” and “brauchten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,470
- “brauche” frequency rank
- #11,618
- “brauchten” frequency rank
- 13088
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | brauche | brauchten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs brauchen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs brauchen |
Where the eye mixes brauche and brauchten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. brauche runs 7 letters (CCVVCCV) against brauchten's 9 (CCVVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses brauche with brauchten
A purely visual mix-up. brauche ([ˈbʁaʊ̯xə]) and brauchten ([ˈbʁaʊ̯xtn̩]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13088, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
brauche is recorded at frequency rank #1,470, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbʁaʊ̯xə]. brauchten is at rank #11,618, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbʁaʊ̯xtn̩].
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 13088, this pair ranks #1,960,207 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of brauche vs brauchten
Shared letters: abcehru. Private to "brauche": -. Private to "brauchten": nt.
"brauche" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCCV · "brauchten" · 9 letters · shape CCVVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "brauche" and "brauchten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "brauche" or "brauchten"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "brauche" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "brauchten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,960,207 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "brauche" and "brauchten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "brauche vs Bresche". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,960,207 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.