guckevsguckenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,669
“gucke” frequency rank
#2,722
“gucken” frequency rank
13391
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gucke gucken
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs gucken seine Augen auf etwas richten

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gucke and gucken apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
gucke
6 ch
gucken

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. gucke ([ˈɡʊkə]) and gucken ([ˈɡʊkn̩]) 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) - “gucke” sits inside “gucken”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13391, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gucke is recorded at frequency rank #10,669, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈɡʊkə]. gucken is at rank #2,722, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈɡʊkn̩].

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 13391, this pair ranks #1,958,300 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of gucke vs gucken

Shared letters: cegku. Private to "gucke": -. Private to "gucken": n.

"gucke" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "gucken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • guckegcuke · ggucke · guccke · gucek · guckke · gukce · ugcke
  • guckengcuken · ggucken · guccken · gucekn · guckenn · guckken · guckne · gukcen

Frequency comparison

gucke#10,669
gucken#2,722

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gucke" and "gucken" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɡʊkə] versus [ˈɡʊkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "gucke" or "gucken"?
"gucken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,722 in our German list, against #10,669 for "gucke". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering gucke vs gucken

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “gucke” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list