Which to use
“irrt” and “ist” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,308
- “irrt” frequency rank
- #7
- “ist” frequency rank
- 20315
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | irrt | ist |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs irren | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens des Verbs sein |
Where the eye mixes irrt and ist
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: irrt vs ist
A purely visual mix-up. irrt ([ɪʁt]) and ist ([ɪst]) 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 20315, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
irrt is recorded at frequency rank #20,308, classified as averb, pronounced [ɪʁt]. ist is at rank #7, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɪst].
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 20315, this pair ranks #1,899,050 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of irrt vs ist
Shared letters: it. Private to "irrt": r. Private to "ist": s.
"irrt" · 4 letters · shape VCCC · "ist" · 3 letters · shape VCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- irrt ← irrtt · irt · irtr · rirt
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "irrt" and "ist" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "irrt" vs "ist" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "irrt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ist" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,899,050 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "irrt" and "ist" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "irrt vs irrte". 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 #1,899,050 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.