Which to use
“fordern” and “forderte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,293
- “fordern” frequency rank
- #4,701
- “forderte” frequency rank
- 6994
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fordern | forderte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas (von jemandem) verlangen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum des Verbs fordern |
Where the eye mixes fordern and forderte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. fordern runs 7 letters (CVCCVCC) against forderte's 8 (CVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses fordern with forderte
A purely visual mix-up. fordern ([ˈfɔʁdɐn]) and forderte ([ˈfɔʁdɐtə]) 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 6994, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fordern is recorded at frequency rank #2,293, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfɔʁdɐn]. forderte is at rank #4,701, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɔʁdɐtə].
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 6994, this pair ranks #1,989,757 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fordern vs forderte
Shared letters: defor. Private to "fordern": n. Private to "forderte": t.
"fordern" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "forderte" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fordern" and "forderte" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "fordern" or "forderte"?
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 "fordern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "forderte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,989,757 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fordern" and "forderte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "forderte vs formierte". 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 #1,989,757 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.