Which to use
“fünfmal” is a num and “fünftel” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,362
- “fünfmal” frequency rank
- #18,551
- “fünftel” frequency rank
- 33913
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fünfmal | fünftel |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | fünf Male; einmal und vier weitere Male | aus einem von fünf gleich großen Teilen bestehend |
Where the eye mixes fünfmal and fünftel
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. fünfmal and fünftel follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses fünfmal with fünftel
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fünfmal is [ˈfʏnfmaːl] while fünftel is [ˈfʏnftl̩]. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33913, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fünfmal is recorded at frequency rank #15,362, classified as anum, pronounced [ˈfʏnfmaːl]. fünftel is at rank #18,551, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈfʏnftl̩].
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 33913, this pair ranks #1,675,236 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fünfmal vs fünftel
Shared letters: flnü. Private to "fünfmal": am. Private to "fünftel": et.
"fünfmal" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "fünftel" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "fünfmal" and "fünftel" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "fünfmal" vs "fünftel" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fünfmal" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fünftel" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,675,236 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fünfmal" and "fünftel" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fünft vs fünftel". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,675,236 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.