Which to use
“denk” is a verb and “deu” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,707
- “denk” frequency rank
- #30,509
- “deu” frequency rank
- 33216
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | denk | deu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs denken | zehn, die Kardinalzahl zwischen neun und elf |
Where the eye mixes denk and deu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses denk with deu
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: denk is [dɛŋk] while deu is [dɛw]. 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 (verb vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33216, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
denk is recorded at frequency rank #2,707, classified as averb, pronounced [dɛŋk]. deu is at rank #30,509, tagged as anum, pronounced [dɛw].
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 33216, this pair ranks #1,690,793 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of denk vs deu
Shared letters: de. Private to "denk": kn. Private to "deu": u.
"denk" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "deu" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- denk ← ddenk · dekn · denkk · dennk · dnek · ednk
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "denk" and "deu" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "denk" vs "deu" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "denk" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "deu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,690,793 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "denk" and "deu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "deu vs diet". 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 #1,690,793 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.