darstellevsdarstelltenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#31,987
“darstelle” frequency rank
#30,994
“darstellten” frequency rank
62981
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature darstelle darstellten
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs darstellen 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs darstellen

Where the eye mixes darstelle and darstellten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. darstelle runs 9 letters (CVCCCVCCV) against darstellten's 11 (CVCCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
darstelle
11 ch
darstellten

Why the eye confuses darstelle with darstellten

A purely visual mix-up. darstelle ([ˈdaːɐ̯ˌʃtɛlə]) and darstellten ([ˈdaːɐ̯ˌʃtɛltn̩]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62981, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

darstelle is recorded at frequency rank #31,987, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈdaːɐ̯ˌʃtɛlə]. darstellten is at rank #30,994, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈdaːɐ̯ˌʃtɛltn̩].

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 62981, this pair ranks #693,112 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of darstelle vs darstellten

Shared letters: adelrst. Private to "darstelle": -. Private to "darstellten": n.

"darstelle" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCCV  ·  "darstellten" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • darstelle ← adrstelle · darrstelle · darsetlle · darsstelle · darstele · darstelel · darstlele · darsttelle
  • darstellten ← adrstellten · darrstellten · darsetllten · darsstellten · darstelletn · darstelltenn · darstelltne · darstelltten

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "darstelle" and "darstellten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈdaːɐ̯ˌʃtɛlə] versus [ˈdaːɐ̯ˌʃtɛltn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "darstelle" or "darstellten" show up more?
"darstellten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #30,994 in our German list, against #31,987 for "darstelle". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "darstelle" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "darstellten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #693,112 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "darstelle" and "darstellten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "darstelle vs Darstellern". 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 #693,112 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