Which to use
“verkürzen” is a verb and “verkürzten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,583
- “verkürzen” frequency rank
- #30,841
- “verkürzten” frequency rank
- 47424
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verkürzen | verkürzten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in der Länge kleiner machen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs verkürzt |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verkürzen and verkürzten apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verkürzen is [fɛɐ̯ˈkʏʁt͡sn̩] while verkürzten is [fɛɐ̯ˈkʏʁt͡stn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47424, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verkürzen is recorded at frequency rank #16,583, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkʏʁt͡sn̩]. verkürzten is at rank #30,841, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkʏʁt͡stn̩].
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 47424, this pair ranks #1,284,727 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verkürzen vs verkürzten
Shared letters: eknrvzü. Private to "verkürzen": -. Private to "verkürzten": t.
"verkürzen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verkürzten" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCCVC
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verkürzen" and "verkürzten" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verkürzen" or "verkürzten"?
Remembering verkürzen vs verkürzten
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “verkürzen”; for an adjective, it's “verkürzten”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verkürzen” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable