entschuldigtvsentschuldigteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: entschuldigt is a verb, entschuldigte is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“entschuldigt” is a verb and “entschuldigte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,920
“entschuldigt” frequency rank
#27,273
“entschuldigte” frequency rank
34193
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature entschuldigt entschuldigte
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs entschuldigen Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs entschuldigt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set entschuldigt and entschuldigte apart are highlighted. They share 12 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

12 ch
entschuldigt
13 ch
entschuldigte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: entschuldigt is [ɛntˈʃʊldɪçt] while entschuldigte is [ɛntˈʃʊldɪçtə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “entschuldigt” sits inside “entschuldigte”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34193, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

entschuldigt is recorded at frequency rank #6,920, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛntˈʃʊldɪçt]. entschuldigte is at rank #27,273, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛntˈʃʊldɪçtə].

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 34193, this pair ranks #1,668,973 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of entschuldigt vs entschuldigte

Shared letters: cdeghilnstu. Private to "entschuldigt": -. Private to "entschuldigte": -.

"entschuldigt" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCCVCCVCC  ·  "entschuldigte" · 13 letters · shape VCCCCCVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • entschuldigtenntschuldigt · enstchuldigt · entcshuldigt · entscchuldigt · entschhuldigt · entschludigt · entschudligt · entschulddigt
  • entschuldigteenntschuldigte · enstchuldigte · entcshuldigte · entscchuldigte · entschhuldigte · entschludigte · entschudligte · entschulddigte

Frequency comparison

entschuldigt#6,920
entschuldigte#27,273

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "entschuldigt" and "entschuldigte" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "entschuldigt" is a verb and "entschuldigte" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "entschuldigt" or "entschuldigte"?
"entschuldigt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,920 in our German list, against #27,273 for "entschuldigte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering entschuldigt vs entschuldigte

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “entschuldigt”; for an adjective, it's “entschuldigte”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “entschuldigt” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list