Which to use
“fünften” is an unknown and “Funken” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,432
- “fünften” frequency rank
- #11,236
- “Funken” frequency rank
- 15668
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fünften | Funken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum des Numerals fünfte | glühendes Teilchen einer Materie |
Where the eye mixes fünften and Funken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. fünften runs 7 letters (CVCCCVC) against Funken's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses fünften with Funken
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fünften is [ˈfʏnftn̩] while Funken is [ˈfʊŋkn̩]. 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 (unknown vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15668, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fünften is recorded at frequency rank #4,432, classified as anunknown, pronounced [ˈfʏnftn̩]. Funken is at rank #11,236, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʊŋkn̩].
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 15668, this pair ranks #1,942,073 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fünften vs Funken
Shared letters: efn. Private to "fünften": tü. Private to "Funken": ku.
"fünften" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "Funken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Funken ← ffunken · fnuken · fuknen · funekn · funkenn · funkken · funkne · funnken
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fünften" for "Funken" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "fünften" or "Funken" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fünften" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Funken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,942,073 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fünften" and "Funken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fügten vs Funken". 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 #1,942,073 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.