Which to use
“esst” is a verb and “est” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #29,114
- “esst” frequency rank
- #6,655
- “est” frequency rank
- 35769
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | esst | est |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Plural Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs essen | eine der vier Haupthimmelsrichtungen; Osten |
Same sound, different letters: esst vs est
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 3 letters.
Homophone desk: esst vs est
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: esst and est carry the same recorded pronunciation, [ɛst]. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is averb, the other anoun, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35769, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
esst is recorded at frequency rank #29,114, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛst]. est is at rank #6,655, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛst].
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 35769, this pair ranks #1,631,969 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of esst vs est
Shared letters: est. Private to "esst": -. Private to "est": -.
"esst" · 4 letters · shape VCCC · "est" · 3 letters · shape VCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- esst ← esstt · eßt
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "esst" for "est" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "esst" or "est" show up more?
What to do next
Sound matches; spelling doesn't. Use the exits below to lock the right form or check a cousin pair.
- Full dictionary entry for "esst" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "est" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,631,969 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "esst" and "est" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Esra vs esst". 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 #1,631,969 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.