Which to use
“öffne” and “öffnete” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #13,081
- “öffne” frequency rank
- #8,668
- “öffnete” frequency rank
- 21749
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | öffne | öffnete |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs öffnen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs öffnen |
Where the eye mixes öffne and öffnete
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. öffne runs 5 letters (VCCCV) against öffnete's 7 (VCCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: öffne vs öffnete
A purely visual mix-up. öffne ([ˈœfnə]) and öffnete ([ˈœfnətə]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “öffne” sits inside “öffnete”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21749, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
öffne is recorded at frequency rank #13,081, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈœfnə]. öffnete is at rank #8,668, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈœfnətə].
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 21749, this pair ranks #1,882,609 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of öffne vs öffnete
Shared letters: efnö. Private to "öffne": -. Private to "öffnete": t.
"öffne" · 5 letters · shape VCCCV · "öffnete" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "öffne" and "öffnete" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "öffne" vs "öffnete" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "öffne" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "öffnete" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,882,609 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "öffne" and "öffnete" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "öffne vs ordne". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,882,609 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.