kennvskundWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: kenn is a verb, kund is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#3,750
“kenn” frequency rank
#26,081
“kund” frequency rank
29831
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature kenn kund
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kennen so, dass man es weiß

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set kenn and kund apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
kenn
4 ch
kund

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: kenn is [kɛn] while kund is [kʊnt]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29831, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

kenn is recorded at frequency rank #3,750, classified as averb, pronounced [kɛn]. kund is at rank #26,081, tagged as anadj, pronounced [kʊnt].

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 29831, this pair ranks #1,759,450 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of kenn vs kund

Shared letters: kn. Private to "kenn": e. Private to "kund": du.

"kenn" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "kund" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • kenneknn · kkenn · knen
  • kundkkund · knud · kudn · kundd · kunnd · uknd

Frequency comparison

kenn#3,750
kund#26,081

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "kenn" and "kund" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "kenn" is a verb and "kund" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "kenn" or "kund"?
"kenn" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,750 in our German list, against #26,081 for "kund". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering kenn vs kund

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “kenn”; for an adjective, it's “kund”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “kenn” 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