Which to use
“Retten” is a noun and “retteten” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,122
- “Retten” frequency rank
- #37,161
- “retteten” frequency rank
- 39283
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Retten | retteten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | das Abwenden eines lebensbedrohlichen Zustandes durch lebensrettende Maßnahmen und/oder durch Befreien aus einer lebensbedrohlichen Zwangslage | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs retten |
Where the eye mixes Retten and retteten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Retten runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against retteten's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: Retten vs retteten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Retten is [ˈʁɛtn̩] while retteten is [ˈʁɛtətn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39283, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Retten is recorded at frequency rank #2,122, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʁɛtn̩]. retteten is at rank #37,161, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʁɛtətn̩].
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 39283, this pair ranks #1,541,026 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Retten vs retteten
Shared letters: enrt. Private to "Retten": -. Private to "retteten": -.
"Retten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "retteten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Retten" and "retteten" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Retten" or "retteten"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "Retten" and "retteten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Retten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "retteten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,541,026 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Retten" and "retteten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "redeten vs retteten". 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 #1,541,026 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.