wirkstvswirktWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#38,527
“wirkst” frequency rank
#1,406
“wirkt” frequency rank
39933
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature wirkst wirkt
Definition 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wirken 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wirken

Where the eye mixes wirkst and wirkt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. wirkst runs 6 letters (CVCCCC) against wirkt's 5 (CVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
wirkst
5 ch
wirkt

Look-alike desk: wirkst vs wirkt

A purely visual mix-up. wirkst ([vɪʁkst]) and wirkt ([vɪʁkt]) 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 39933, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

wirkst is recorded at frequency rank #38,527, classified as averb, pronounced [vɪʁkst]. wirkt is at rank #1,406, tagged as averb, pronounced [vɪʁkt].

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 39933, this pair ranks #1,522,785 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of wirkst vs wirkt

Shared letters: ikrtw. Private to "wirkst": s. Private to "wirkt": -.

"wirkst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC  ·  "wirkt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • wirkst ← iwrkst · wikrst · wirkkst · wirksst · wirkstt · wirkts · wirrkst · wirskt
  • wirkt ← iwrkt · wikrt · wirkkt · wirktt · wirrkt · wirtk · wrikt · wwirkt

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "wirkst" and "wirkt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([vɪʁkst] versus [vɪʁkt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "wirkst" or "wirkt"?
"wirkt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,406 in our German list, against #38,527 for "wirkst". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "wirkst" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "wirkt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,522,785 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "wirkst" and "wirkt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "wichst vs wirkst". 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 #1,522,785 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list