kontaktierenvskontaktiertWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#11,276
“kontaktieren” frequency rank
#16,758
“kontaktiert” frequency rank
28034
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature kontaktieren kontaktiert
Definition Verbindung aufnehmen 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kontaktieren

Where the eye mixes kontaktieren and kontaktiert

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. kontaktieren runs 12 letters (CVCCVCCVVCVC) against kontaktiert's 11 (CVCCVCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

12 ch
kontaktieren
11 ch
kontaktiert

Visual trap between kontaktieren and kontaktiert

A purely visual mix-up. kontaktieren ([kɔntakˈtiːʁən]) and kontaktiert ([kɔntakˈtiːɐ̯t]) 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 28034, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

kontaktieren is recorded at frequency rank #11,276, classified as averb, pronounced [kɔntakˈtiːʁən]. kontaktiert is at rank #16,758, tagged as averb, pronounced [kɔntakˈtiːɐ̯t].

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 28034, this pair ranks #1,791,717 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of kontaktieren vs kontaktiert

Shared letters: aeiknort. Private to "kontaktieren": -. Private to "kontaktiert": -.

"kontaktieren" · 12 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVCVC  ·  "kontaktiert" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • kontaktieren ← kkontaktieren · knotaktieren · konatktieren · konntaktieren · kontakiteren · kontakktieren · kontakteiren · kontaktieern
  • kontaktiert ← kkontaktiert · knotaktiert · konatktiert · konntaktiert · kontakitert · kontakktiert · kontakteirt · kontaktierrt

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "kontaktieren" and "kontaktiert" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kɔntakˈtiːʁən] versus [kɔntakˈtiːɐ̯t]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "kontaktieren" or "kontaktiert" show up more?
"kontaktieren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,276 in our German list, against #16,758 for "kontaktiert". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "kontaktieren" and "kontaktiert" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "kontaktieren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "kontaktiert" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,791,717 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "kontaktieren" and "kontaktiert" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "kontaktiere vs kontaktiert". 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 #1,791,717 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