fändevsfängtWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#9,197
“fände” frequency rank
#3,037
“fängt” frequency rank
12234
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fände fängt
Definition 1. Person Singular Konjunktiv II Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs finden 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fangen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fände and fängt apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
fände
5 ch
fängt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fände ([ˈfɛndə]) and fängt ([fɛŋt]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12234, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fände is recorded at frequency rank #9,197, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfɛndə]. fängt is at rank #3,037, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛŋt].

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 12234, this pair ranks #1,965,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fände vs fängt

Shared letters: fnä. Private to "fände": de. Private to "fängt": gt.

"fände" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "fängt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fände" and "fängt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfɛndə] versus [fɛŋt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fände" or "fängt"?
"fängt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,037 in our German list, against #9,197 for "fände". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list