Which to use
“fordern” and “forderten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,293
- “fordern” frequency rank
- #12,493
- “forderten” frequency rank
- 14786
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fordern | forderten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas (von jemandem) verlangen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs fordern |
Where the eye mixes fordern and forderten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. fordern runs 7 letters (CVCCVCC) against forderten's 9 (CVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses fordern with forderten
A purely visual mix-up. fordern ([ˈfɔʁdɐn]) and forderten ([ˈfɔʁdɐtn̩]) 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 14786, 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]. forderten is at rank #12,493, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɔʁdɐtn̩].
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 14786, this pair ranks #1,948,759 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fordern vs forderten
Shared letters: defnor. Private to "fordern": -. Private to "forderten": t.
"fordern" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "forderten" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fordern" for "forderten" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fordern" or "forderten"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fordern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "forderten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,948,759 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fordern" and "forderten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "foltern vs fordern". 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 #1,948,759 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.