empfundenenvserfundenenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“empfundenen” and “erfundenen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#38,707
“empfundenen” frequency rank
#28,635
“erfundenen” frequency rank
67342
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature empfundenen erfundenen
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs empfunden Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erfunden

Where the eye mixes empfundenen and erfundenen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. empfundenen runs 11 letters (VCCCVCCVCVC) against erfundenen's 10 (VCCVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

11 ch
empfundenen
10 ch
erfundenen

Look-alike desk: empfundenen vs erfundenen

A purely visual mix-up. empfundenen ([ɛmˈp͡fʊndənən]) and erfundenen ([ɛɐ̯ˈfʊndənən]) 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 67342, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

empfundenen is recorded at frequency rank #38,707, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛmˈp͡fʊndənən]. erfundenen is at rank #28,635, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfʊndənən].

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 67342, this pair ranks #543,297 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of empfundenen vs erfundenen

Shared letters: defnu. Private to "empfundenen": mp. Private to "erfundenen": r.

"empfundenen" · 11 letters · shape VCCCVCCVCVC  ·  "erfundenen" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • empfundenen ← emfpundenen · emmpfundenen · empffundenen · empfnudenen · empfudnenen · empfunddenen · empfundeenn · empfundenenn
  • erfundenen ← efrundenen · erffundenen · erfnudenen · erfudnenen · erfunddenen · erfundeenn · erfundenenn · erfundennen

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "empfundenen" for "erfundenen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ɛmˈp͡fʊndənən] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈfʊndənən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "empfundenen" or "erfundenen"?
"erfundenen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #28,635 in our German list, against #38,707 for "empfundenen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "empfundenen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "erfundenen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #543,297 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "empfundenen" and "erfundenen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empfundene 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 #543,297 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list