Which to use
“können” is a verb and “Korken” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #82
- “können” frequency rank
- #38,859
- “Korken” frequency rank
- 38941
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | können | Korken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas zu tun vermögen | Verschluss einer Flasche, der oftmals aus der Rinde der Korkeiche hergestellt ist |
Where the eye mixes können and Korken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. können and Korken follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: können vs Korken
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: können is [ˈkœnən] while Korken is [ˈkɔʁkn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38941, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
können is recorded at frequency rank #82, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkœnən]. Korken is at rank #38,859, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkɔʁkn̩].
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 38941, this pair ranks #1,550,490 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of können vs Korken
Shared letters: ekn. Private to "können": ö. Private to "Korken": or.
"können" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Korken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Korken ← kkorken · kokren · korekn · korkenn · korkken · korkne · korrken · kroken
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "können" for "Korken" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "können" or "Korken" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "können" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Korken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,550,490 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "können" and "Korken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Korken vs kucken". 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 #1,550,490 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.