Which to use
“kürzen” and “kürzt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,680
- “kürzen” frequency rank
- #44,034
- “kürzt” frequency rank
- 59714
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kürzen | kürzt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | kürzer machen | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kürzen |
Where the eye mixes kürzen and kürzt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. kürzen runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against kürzt's 5 (CVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between kürzen and kürzt
A purely visual mix-up. kürzen ([ˈkʏʁt͡sn̩]) and kürzt ([kʏʁt͡st]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59714, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kürzen is recorded at frequency rank #15,680, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkʏʁt͡sn̩]. kürzt is at rank #44,034, tagged as averb, pronounced [kʏʁt͡st].
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 59714, this pair ranks #814,151 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of kürzen vs kürzt
Shared letters: krzü. Private to "kürzen": en. Private to "kürzt": t.
"kürzen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "kürzt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "kürzen" for "kürzt" ever safe?
Which is more common, "kürzen" or "kürzt"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "kürzen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kürzt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #814,151 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "kürzen" and "kürzt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kurie vs kürzt". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #814,151 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.