fünf vs fünft, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#442
“fünf” frequency rank: #41,828
“fünft” frequency rank: 42270
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	fünf	fünft
Definition	fünf, die Kardinalzahl zwischen vier und sechs	mit mit einer Gruppe aus fünf Individuen etwas machen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fünf and fünft apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch

fünf

5 ch

fünft

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fünf ([fʏnf]) and fünft ([fʏnft]) 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) - “fünf” sits inside “fünft”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42270, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fünf is recorded at frequency rank #442, classified as anum, pronounced [fʏnf]. fünft is at rank #41,828, tagged as anum, pronounced [fʏnft].

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 42270, this pair ranks #1,454,549 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of fünf vs fünft

Shared letters: fnü. Private to "fünf": -. Private to "fünft": t.

"fünf" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "fünft" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Frequency comparison

fünf#442

fünft#41,828

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fünf" and "fünft" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently ([fʏnf] versus [fʏnft]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "fünf" or "fünft"?

"fünf" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #442 in our German list, against #41,828 for "fünft". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering fünf vs fünft

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fünf” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable