decktvsdeckteWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#7,452
“deckt” frequency rank
#29,997
“deckte” frequency rank
37449
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature deckt deckte
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs decken 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs decken

Where the eye mixes deckt and deckte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

5 ch
deckt
6 ch
deckte

Why the eye confuses deckt with deckte

A purely visual mix-up. deckt ([dɛkt]) and deckte ([ˈdɛktə]) 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 extra letter(s) - “deckt” sits inside “deckte”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

deckt is recorded at frequency rank #7,452, classified as averb, pronounced [dɛkt]. deckte is at rank #29,997, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈdɛktə].

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 37449, this pair ranks #1,589,947 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of deckt vs deckte

Shared letters: cdekt. Private to "deckt": -. Private to "deckte": -.

"deckt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC  ·  "deckte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • decktdcekt · ddeckt · decckt · deckkt · decktt · dectk · dekct · edckt
  • decktedcekte · ddeckte · decckte · decket · deckkte · decktte · dectke · dekcte

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "deckt" and "deckte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([dɛkt] versus [ˈdɛktə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "deckt" or "deckte"?
"deckt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,452 in our German list, against #29,997 for "deckte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "deckt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "deckte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,589,947 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "deckt" and "deckte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "deckte vs devote". 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 #1,589,947 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