Which to use
“Gedanke” is a noun and “gedenkt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,189
- “Gedanke” frequency rank
- #23,141
- “gedenkt” frequency rank
- 26330
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Gedanke | gedenkt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Vorgang des Denkens | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs gedenken |
Where the eye mixes Gedanke and gedenkt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Gedanke (CVCVCCV) and gedenkt (CVCVCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses Gedanke with gedenkt
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Gedanke is [ɡəˈdaŋkə] while gedenkt is [ɡəˈdɛŋkt]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26330, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Gedanke is recorded at frequency rank #3,189, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɡəˈdaŋkə]. gedenkt is at rank #23,141, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈdɛŋkt].
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 26330, this pair ranks #1,819,764 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Gedanke vs gedenkt
Shared letters: degkn. Private to "Gedanke": a. Private to "gedenkt": t.
"Gedanke" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "gedenkt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Gedanke" and "gedenkt" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Gedanke" or "gedenkt" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Gedanke" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gedenkt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,819,764 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Gedanke" and "gedenkt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gedenkt vs geleakt". 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 #1,819,764 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.