Which to use
“wächst” and “wichst” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,751
- “wächst” frequency rank
- #45,699
- “wichst” frequency rank
- 48450
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wächst | wichst |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wachsen | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wichsen |
Where the eye mixes wächst and wichst
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. wächst and wichst follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses wächst with wichst
A purely visual mix-up. wächst ([vɛkst]) and wichst ([vɪkst]) 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 a single letter - ä in “wächst” becomes i in “wichst”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48450, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wächst is recorded at frequency rank #2,751, classified as averb, pronounced [vɛkst]. wichst is at rank #45,699, tagged as averb, pronounced [vɪkst].
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 48450, this pair ranks #1,248,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of wächst vs wichst
Shared letters: chstw. Private to "wächst": ä. Private to "wichst": i.
"wächst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC · "wichst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- wichst ← iwchst · wcihst · wicchst · wichhst · wichsst · wichstt · wichts · wihcst
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "wächst" for "wichst" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "wächst" or "wichst" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "wächst" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wichst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,248,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "wächst" and "wichst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Wichse vs wichst". 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 #1,248,168 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.