küsstevsKüsteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: küsste is a verb, Küste is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“küsste” is a verb and “Küste” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#24,811
“küsste” frequency rank
#3,978
“Küste” frequency rank
28789
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature küsste Küste
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs küssen Grenzsaum zwischen Land und Meer

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set küsste and Küste apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
küsste
5 ch
Küste

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Say them out loud and nothing separates them: küsste and Küste carry the same recorded pronunciation, [ˈkʏstə]. 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 28789, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

küsste is recorded at frequency rank #24,811, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkʏstə]. Küste is at rank #3,978, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkʏstə].

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 28789, this pair ranks #1,778,561 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of küsste vs Küste

Shared letters: ekstü. Private to "küsste": -. Private to "Küste": -.

"küsste" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "Küste" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Frequency comparison

küsste#24,811
Küste#3,978

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "küsste" and "Küste" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "küsste" is a verb and "Küste" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "küsste" or "Küste"?
"Küste" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,978 in our German list, against #24,811 for "küsste". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering küsste vs Küste

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “küsste”; for a noun, it's “Küste”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “küsste” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list