formtvsformteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,875
“formt” frequency rank
#38,744
“formte” frequency rank
65619
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature formt formte
Definition 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs formen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs formen

Where the eye mixes formt and formte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

5 ch
formt
6 ch
formte

Look-alike desk: formt vs formte

A purely visual mix-up. formt ([fɔʁmt]) and formte ([ˈfɔʁmtə]) 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) - “formt” sits inside “formte”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65619, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

formt is recorded at frequency rank #26,875, classified as averb, pronounced [fɔʁmt]. formte is at rank #38,744, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɔʁmtə].

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 65619, this pair ranks #600,648 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of formt vs formte

Shared letters: fmort. Private to "formt": -. Private to "formte": e.

"formt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC  ·  "formte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • formtfformt · fomrt · formmt · formtt · forrmt · fortm · fromt · ofrmt
  • formtefformte · fomrte · formet · formmte · formtte · forrmte · fortme · fromte

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "formt" for "formte" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([fɔʁmt] versus [ˈfɔʁmtə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "formt" or "formte"?
"formt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,875 in our German list, against #38,744 for "formte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "formt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "formte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #600,648 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "formt" and "formte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "filmte vs formte". 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 #600,648 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