Which to use
“pflücken” and “pflügen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #30,717
- “pflücken” frequency rank
- #48,382
- “pflügen” frequency rank
- 79099
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pflücken | pflügen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit den Fingern abrupfen oder abbrechen | mit einem Pflug tätig sein |
Where the eye mixes pflücken and pflügen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. pflücken runs 8 letters (CCCVCCVC) against pflügen's 7 (CCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses pflücken with pflügen
A purely visual mix-up. pflücken ([ˈp͡flʏkn̩]) and pflügen ([ˈp͡flyːɡn̩]) 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 79099, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pflücken is recorded at frequency rank #30,717, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈp͡flʏkn̩]. pflügen is at rank #48,382, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈp͡flyːɡn̩].
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 79099, this pair ranks #223,826 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of pflücken vs pflügen
Shared letters: eflnpü. Private to "pflücken": ck. Private to "pflügen": g.
"pflücken" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC · "pflügen" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pflücken" and "pflügen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "pflücken" or "pflügen" show up more?
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 "pflücken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pflügen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #223,826 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pflücken" and "pflügen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pflegten vs pflügen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #223,826 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.