Which to use
“fahnden” and “fände” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #49,647
- “fahnden” frequency rank
- #9,197
- “fände” frequency rank
- 58844
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fahnden | fände |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (jemanden, etwas) polizeilich suchen (zwecks Verhaftung oder Beschlagnahme) | 1. Person Singular Konjunktiv II Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs finden |
Where the eye mixes fahnden and fände
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. fahnden runs 7 letters (CVCCCVC) against fände's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between fahnden and fände
A purely visual mix-up. fahnden ([ˈfaːndn̩]) and fände ([ˈfɛndə]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58844, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fahnden is recorded at frequency rank #49,647, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfaːndn̩]. fände is at rank #9,197, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɛndə].
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 58844, this pair ranks #847,172 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of fahnden vs fände
Shared letters: defn. Private to "fahnden": ah. Private to "fände": ä.
"fahnden" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "fände" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- fahnden ← afhnden · fahdnen · fahhnden · fahndden · fahndenn · fahndne · fahnedn · fahnnden
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fahnden" for "fände" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fahnden" or "fände"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "fahnden" and "fände" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fahnden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fände" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #847,172 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fahnden" and "fände" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fahnden vs fahndet". 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 #847,172 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.