fünfvsfunztTell them apart

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

Which to use

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

#442
“fünf” frequency rank
#46,661
“funzt” frequency rank
47103
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fünf funzt
Definition fünf, die Kardinalzahl zwischen vier und sechs 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs funzen

Where the eye mixes fünf and funzt

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

4 ch
fünf
5 ch
funzt

Look-alike desk: fünf vs funzt

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fünf is [fʏnf] while funzt is [fʊnt͡st]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47103, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fünf is recorded at frequency rank #442, classified as anum, pronounced [fʏnf]. funzt is at rank #46,661, tagged as averb, pronounced [fʊnt͡st].

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 47103, this pair ranks #1,296,076 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of fünf vs funzt

Shared letters: fn. Private to "fünf": ü. Private to "funzt": tuz.

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

Known mistypes of this pair

  • funztffunzt · fnuzt · funnzt · funtz · funztt · funzzt · fuznt · ufnzt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "fünf" and "funzt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "fünf" is a num and "funzt" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "fünf" or "funzt"?
"fünf" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #442 in our German list, against #46,661 for "funzt". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "fünf" and "funzt" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "fünf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "funzt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,296,076 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "fünf" and "funzt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "funkt vs funzt". 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 #1,296,076 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