entfernevsentfernenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#27,272
“entferne” frequency rank
#3,516
“entfernen” frequency rank
30788
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature entferne entfernen
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs entfernen hinwegnehmen oder herausnehmen; dafür sorgen, dass jemand oder etwas nicht da ist

Where the eye mixes entferne and entfernen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. entferne runs 8 letters (VCCCVCCV) against entfernen's 9 (VCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
entferne
9 ch
entfernen

Visual trap between entferne and entfernen

A purely visual mix-up. entferne ([ɛntˈfɛʁnə]) and entfernen ([ɛntˈfɛʁnən]) 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 extra letter(s) - “entferne” sits inside “entfernen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30788, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

entferne is recorded at frequency rank #27,272, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛntˈfɛʁnə]. entfernen is at rank #3,516, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛntˈfɛʁnən].

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 30788, this pair ranks #1,741,055 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of entferne vs entfernen

Shared letters: efnrt. Private to "entferne": -. Private to "entfernen": -.

"entferne" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCCV  ·  "entfernen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • entferne ← enfterne · enntferne · entefrne · entfenre · entferen · entferrne · entfferne · entfrene
  • entfernen ← enfternen · enntfernen · entefrnen · entfenren · entferenn · entfernenn · entfernne · entfernnen

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "entferne" and "entfernen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ɛntˈfɛʁnə] versus [ɛntˈfɛʁnən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "entferne" vs "entfernen" - which ranks higher?
"entfernen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,516 in our German list, against #27,272 for "entferne". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "entferne" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "entfernen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,741,055 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "entferne" and "entfernen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "entferne vs entfernter". 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 #1,741,055 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