Which to use
“empfinden” and “erfinden” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,700
- “empfinden” frequency rank
- #9,535
- “erfinden” frequency rank
- 15235
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | empfinden | erfinden |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit den menschlichen Sinnen (etwas) wahrnehmen | eine technische Neuheit erdenken; eine Erfindung machen |
Where the eye mixes empfinden and erfinden
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. empfinden runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against erfinden's 8 (VCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: empfinden vs erfinden
A purely visual mix-up. empfinden ([ɛmˈp͡fɪndn̩]) and erfinden ([ɛɐ̯ˈfɪndn̩]) 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 15235, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
empfinden is recorded at frequency rank #5,700, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fɪndn̩]. erfinden is at rank #9,535, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfɪndn̩].
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 15235, this pair ranks #1,945,398 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of empfinden vs erfinden
Shared letters: defin. Private to "empfinden": mp. Private to "erfinden": r.
"empfinden" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "erfinden" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "empfinden" for "erfinden" ever safe?
Which is more common, "empfinden" or "erfinden"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "empfinden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erfinden" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,945,398 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "empfinden" and "erfinden" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "einfinden vs erfinden". 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 #1,945,398 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.