Which to use
“kannten” and “kauften” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,934
- “kannten” frequency rank
- #18,595
- “kauften” frequency rank
- 28529
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kannten | kauften |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum des Verbs kennen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs kaufen |
Where the eye mixes kannten and kauften
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. kannten (CVCCCVC) and kauften (CVVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses kannten with kauften
A purely visual mix-up. kannten ([ˈkantn̩]) and kauften ([ˈkaʊ̯ftn̩]) 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 28529, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kannten is recorded at frequency rank #9,934, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkantn̩]. kauften is at rank #18,595, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkaʊ̯ftn̩].
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 28529, this pair ranks #1,783,128 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of kannten vs kauften
Shared letters: aeknt. Private to "kannten": -. Private to "kauften": fu.
"kannten" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "kauften" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "kannten" and "kauften" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "kannten" vs "kauften" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "kannten" and "kauften" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "kannten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kauften" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,783,128 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "kannten" and "kauften" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "kauften vs kürten". 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 #1,783,128 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.