gedeihtvsgedenktWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“gedeiht” and “gedenkt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#25,141
“gedeiht” frequency rank
#23,141
“gedenkt” frequency rank
48282
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gedeiht gedenkt
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs gedeihen 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs gedenken

Where the eye mixes gedeiht and gedenkt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. gedeiht (CVCVVCC) and gedenkt (CVCVCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
gedeiht
7 ch
gedenkt

Why the eye confuses gedeiht with gedenkt

A purely visual mix-up. gedeiht ([ɡəˈdaɪ̯t]) and gedenkt ([ɡəˈdɛŋkt]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48282, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gedeiht is recorded at frequency rank #25,141, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈdaɪ̯t]. 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 48282, this pair ranks #1,254,282 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of gedeiht vs gedenkt

Shared letters: degt. Private to "gedeiht": hi. Private to "gedenkt": kn.

"gedeiht" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC  ·  "gedenkt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gedeiht ← egdeiht · gdeeiht · geddeiht · gedehit · gedeihht · gedeihtt · gedeith · gedieht
  • gedenkt ← egdenkt · gdeenkt · geddenkt · gedeknt · gedenkkt · gedenktt · gedennkt · gedentk

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "gedeiht" for "gedenkt" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈdaɪ̯t] versus [ɡəˈdɛŋkt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "gedeiht" or "gedenkt" show up more?
"gedenkt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,141 in our German list, against #25,141 for "gedeiht". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "gedeiht" 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 #1,254,282 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "gedeiht" and "gedenkt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gedehnt vs gedeiht". 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 #1,254,282 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