Which to use
“spannen” and “spenden” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,042
- “spannen” frequency rank
- #3,154
- “spenden” frequency rank
- 22196
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spannen | spenden |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas mit Kraftaufwand glatt machen | etwas für einen guten Zweck verschenken, eine Spende geben, positive Gefühle und Wertung austeilen |
Where the eye mixes spannen and spenden
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. spannen and spenden follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: spannen vs spenden
A purely visual mix-up. spannen ([ˈʃpanən]) and spenden ([ˈʃpɛndn̩]) 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 22196, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spannen is recorded at frequency rank #19,042, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃpanən]. spenden is at rank #3,154, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃpɛndn̩].
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 22196, this pair ranks #1,877,114 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of spannen vs spenden
Shared letters: enps. Private to "spannen": a. Private to "spenden": d.
"spannen" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC · "spenden" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "spannen" and "spenden" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "spannen" vs "spenden" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "spannen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "spenden" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,877,114 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spannen" and "spenden" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Spange vs spannen". 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 #1,877,114 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.