Which to use
“rette” is a verb and “Retten” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #25,285
- “rette” frequency rank
- #2,122
- “Retten” frequency rank
- 27407
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rette | Retten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs retten | das Abwenden eines lebensbedrohlichen Zustandes durch lebensrettende Maßnahmen und/oder durch Befreien aus einer lebensbedrohlichen Zwangslage |
Where the eye mixes rette and Retten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses rette with Retten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: rette is [ˈʁɛtə] while Retten is [ˈʁɛtn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “rette” sits inside “Retten”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27407, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rette is recorded at frequency rank #25,285, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʁɛtə]. Retten is at rank #2,122, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʁɛtn̩].
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 27407, this pair ranks #1,802,267 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of rette vs Retten
Shared letters: ert. Private to "rette": -. Private to "Retten": n.
"rette" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "Retten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "rette" for "Retten" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "rette" or "Retten" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "rette" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Retten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,802,267 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rette" and "Retten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ragte vs rette". 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 #1,802,267 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.