Which to use
“empfand” and “empfinde” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,552
- “empfand” frequency rank
- #10,262
- “empfinde” frequency rank
- 24814
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | empfand | empfinde |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs empfinden | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs empfinden |
Where the eye mixes empfand and empfinde
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. empfand runs 7 letters (VCCCVCC) against empfinde's 8 (VCCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses empfand with empfinde
A purely visual mix-up. empfand ([ɛmˈp͡fant]) and empfinde ([ɛmˈp͡fɪndə]) 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 24814, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
empfand is recorded at frequency rank #14,552, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fant]. empfinde is at rank #10,262, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪndə].
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 24814, this pair ranks #1,842,336 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of empfand vs empfinde
Shared letters: defmnp. Private to "empfand": a. Private to "empfinde": i.
"empfand" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCC · "empfinde" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "empfand" for "empfinde" ever safe?
Frequency check: "empfand" vs "empfinde" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "empfand" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "empfinde" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,842,336 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "empfand" and "empfinde" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empfand vs empfange". 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 #1,842,336 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.