Which to use
“ragen” and “ragte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,473
- “ragen” frequency rank
- #46,219
- “ragte” frequency rank
- 68692
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ragen | ragte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich durch eine vertikale Aufrichtung von der restlichen Umgebung abheben | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs ragen |
Where the eye mixes ragen and ragte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. ragen (CVCVC) and ragte (CVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses ragen with ragte
A purely visual mix-up. ragen ([ˈʁaːɡn̩]) and ragte ([ˈʁaːktə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 68692, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ragen is recorded at frequency rank #22,473, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʁaːɡn̩]. ragte is at rank #46,219, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʁaːktə].
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 68692, this pair ranks #499,905 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ragen vs ragte
Shared letters: aegr. Private to "ragen": n. Private to "ragte": t.
"ragen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "ragte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ragen" for "ragte" ever safe?
Frequency check: "ragen" vs "ragte" - which ranks higher?
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 "ragen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ragte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #499,905 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ragen" and "ragte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "RAe vs ragte". 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 #499,905 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.