fünfvsFunkTell them apart

Quick tell: fünf is a num, Funk is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“fünf” is a num and “Funk” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#442
“fünf” frequency rank
#5,170
“Funk” frequency rank
5612
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fünf Funk
Definition fünf, die Kardinalzahl zwischen vier und sechs Übertragung von Informationen mittels elektromagnetischer Wellen, die ohne Drähte funktioniert und die besondere Geräte zum Senden und zum Empfangen benötigt

Where the eye mixes fünf and Funk

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
fünf
4 ch
Funk

Look-alike desk: fünf vs Funk

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fünf is [fʏnf] while Funk is [fʊŋk]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5612, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fünf is recorded at frequency rank #442, classified as anum, pronounced [fʏnf]. Funk is at rank #5,170, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fʊŋk].

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 5612, this pair ranks #1,994,228 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fünf vs Funk

Shared letters: fn. Private to "fünf": ü. Private to "Funk": ku.

"fünf" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Funk" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Funkffunk · fnuk · fukn · funkk · funnk · ufnk

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fünf" and "Funk" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "fünf" is a num and "Funk" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "fünf" or "Funk"?
"fünf" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #442 in our German list, against #5,170 for "Funk". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "fünf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Funk" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,994,228 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "fünf" and "Funk" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Fock vs Funk". 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 #1,994,228 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