Which to use
“fürchtete” and “fürchteten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,260
- “fürchtete” frequency rank
- #33,056
- “fürchteten” frequency rank
- 53316
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fürchtete | fürchteten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs fürchten | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs fürchten |
Where the eye mixes fürchtete and fürchteten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. fürchtete runs 9 letters (CVCCCCVCV) against fürchteten's 10 (CVCCCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses fürchtete with fürchteten
A purely visual mix-up. fürchtete ([ˈfʏʁçtətə]) and fürchteten ([ˈfʏʁçtətn̩]) 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) - “fürchtete” sits inside “fürchteten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53316, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fürchtete is recorded at frequency rank #20,260, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfʏʁçtətə]. fürchteten is at rank #33,056, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfʏʁçtətn̩].
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 53316, this pair ranks #1,062,791 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of fürchtete vs fürchteten
Shared letters: cefhrtü. Private to "fürchtete": -. Private to "fürchteten": n.
"fürchtete" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCCVCV · "fürchteten" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fürchtete" for "fürchteten" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fürchtete" or "fürchteten"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "fürchtete" and "fürchteten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fürchtete" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fürchteten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,062,791 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fürchtete" and "fürchteten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fürchtet vs fürchteten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,062,791 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.