Which to use
“wünschen” and “wünscht” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,465
- “wünschen” frequency rank
- #3,555
- “wünscht” frequency rank
- 5020
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wünschen | wünscht |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas ersehnen, erhoffen | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wünschen |
Where the eye mixes wünschen and wünscht
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. wünschen runs 8 letters (CVCCCCVC) against wünscht's 7 (CVCCCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between wünschen and wünscht
A purely visual mix-up. wünschen ([ˈvʏnʃn̩]) and wünscht ([vʏnʃt]) 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 5020, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wünschen is recorded at frequency rank #1,465, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvʏnʃn̩]. wünscht is at rank #3,555, tagged as averb, pronounced [vʏnʃt].
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 5020, this pair ranks #1,996,015 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of wünschen vs wünscht
Shared letters: chnswü. Private to "wünschen": e. Private to "wünscht": t.
"wünschen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCCVC · "wünscht" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "wünschen" and "wünscht" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "wünschen" vs "wünscht" - which ranks higher?
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 "wünschen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wünscht" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,996,015 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "wünschen" and "wünscht" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "wünscht vs wusch". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,996,015 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.