Which to use
“empfunden” and “erfunden” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,702
- “empfunden” frequency rank
- #4,425
- “erfunden” frequency rank
- 13127
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | empfunden | erfunden |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs empfinden | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erfinden |
Where the eye mixes empfunden and erfunden
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. empfunden runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against erfunden's 8 (VCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: empfunden vs erfunden
A purely visual mix-up. empfunden ([ɛmˈp͡fʊndn̩]) and erfunden ([ɛɐ̯ˈfʊndn̩]) 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 13127, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
empfunden is recorded at frequency rank #8,702, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fʊndn̩]. erfunden is at rank #4,425, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfʊndn̩].
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 13127, this pair ranks #1,959,941 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of empfunden vs erfunden
Shared letters: defnu. Private to "empfunden": mp. Private to "erfunden": r.
"empfunden" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "erfunden" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "empfunden" for "erfunden" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "empfunden" or "erfunden" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "empfunden" and "erfunden" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "empfunden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erfunden" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,959,941 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "empfunden" and "erfunden" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empfunden vs empfundenen". 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 #1,959,941 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.