parkenvspickenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“parken” and “picken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#7,515
“parken” frequency rank
#45,512
“picken” frequency rank
53027
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature parken picken
Definition ein Fahrzeug auf einem dafür vorgesehenen Platz abstellen mit dem Schnabel auf etwas einhacken, insbesondere Futterkörner

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set parken and picken apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
parken
6 ch
picken

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. parken ([ˈpaʁkn̩]) and picken ([ˈpɪkn̩]) 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 53027, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

parken is recorded at frequency rank #7,515, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈpaʁkn̩]. picken is at rank #45,512, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈpɪkn̩].

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 53027, this pair ranks #1,073,951 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of parken vs picken

Shared letters: eknp. Private to "parken": ar. Private to "picken": ci.

"parken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "picken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • parkenaprken · pakren · parekn · parkenn · parkken · parkne · parrken · pparken
  • pickenipcken · pciken · piccken · picekn · pickenn · pickken · pickne · pikcen

Frequency comparison

parken#7,515
picken#45,512

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "parken" and "picken" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈpaʁkn̩] versus [ˈpɪkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "parken" or "picken"?
"parken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,515 in our German list, against #45,512 for "picken". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering parken vs picken

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “parken” 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