klettertvskletterteConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#21,662
“klettert” frequency rank
#22,796
“kletterte” frequency rank
44458
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature klettert kletterte
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs klettern 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs klettern

Where the eye mixes klettert and kletterte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. klettert runs 8 letters (CCVCCVCC) against kletterte's 9 (CCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
klettert
9 ch
kletterte

Look-alike desk: klettert vs kletterte

A purely visual mix-up. klettert ([ˈklɛtɐt]) and kletterte ([ˈklɛtɐtə]) 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) - “klettert” sits inside “kletterte”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44458, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

klettert is recorded at frequency rank #21,662, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈklɛtɐt]. kletterte is at rank #22,796, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈklɛtɐtə].

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 44458, this pair ranks #1,385,555 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of klettert vs kletterte

Shared letters: eklrt. Private to "klettert": -. Private to "kletterte": -.

"klettert" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC  ·  "kletterte" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • klettertkelttert · kklettert · kletert · kletetrt · kletterrt · klettertt · klettetr · klettret
  • klettertekeltterte · kkletterte · kleterte · kletetrte · kletteret · kletterrte · klettertte · klettetre

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "klettert" and "kletterte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈklɛtɐt] versus [ˈklɛtɐtə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "klettert" or "kletterte" show up more?
"klettert" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,662 in our German list, against #22,796 for "kletterte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "klettert" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "kletterte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,385,555 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "klettert" and "kletterte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kletterer vs kletterte". 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 #1,385,555 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