gedecktvsgedenkeWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: gedeckt is a adjective, gedenke is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“gedeckt” is an adjective and “gedenke” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#7,609
“gedeckt” frequency rank
#42,511
“gedenke” frequency rank
50120
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gedeckt gedenke
Definition in zurückhaltenden, matten, eher dunklen Farbtönen gehalten 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs gedenken

Where the eye mixes gedeckt and gedenke

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
gedeckt
7 ch
gedenke

Look-alike desk: gedeckt vs gedenke

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: gedeckt is [ɡəˈdɛkt] while gedenke is [ɡəˈdɛŋkə]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50120, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gedeckt is recorded at frequency rank #7,609, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈdɛkt]. gedenke is at rank #42,511, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈdɛŋkə].

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 50120, this pair ranks #1,185,891 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of gedeckt vs gedenke

Shared letters: degk. Private to "gedeckt": ct. Private to "gedenke": n.

"gedeckt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC  ·  "gedenke" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gedecktegdeckt · gdeeckt · gedcekt · geddeckt · gedecckt · gedeckkt · gedecktt · gedectk
  • gedenkeegdenke · gdeenke · geddenke · gedekne · gedenek · gedenkke · gedennke · gedneke

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gedeckt" and "gedenke" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "gedeckt" is an adjective and "gedenke" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "gedeckt" or "gedenke"?
"gedeckt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,609 in our German list, against #42,511 for "gedenke". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "gedeckt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gedenke" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,185,891 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "gedeckt" and "gedenke" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gedenke vs Gewerke". 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 #1,185,891 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