säuftvsspültTell them apart

Which to use

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

#44,266
“säuft” frequency rank
#34,379
“spült” frequency rank
78645
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature säuft spült
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs saufen 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs spülen

Where the eye mixes säuft and spült

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. säuft (CVVCC) and spült (CCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

5 ch
säuft
5 ch
spült

Visual trap between säuft and spült

A purely visual mix-up. säuft ([ˈzɔɪ̯ft]) and spült ([ʃpyːlt]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 78645, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

säuft is recorded at frequency rank #44,266, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈzɔɪ̯ft]. spült is at rank #34,379, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃpyːlt].

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 78645, this pair ranks #233,666 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of säuft vs spült

Shared letters: st. Private to "säuft": fuä. Private to "spült": lpü.

"säuft" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC  ·  "spült" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "säuft" and "spült" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzɔɪ̯ft] versus [ʃpyːlt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "säuft" or "spült"?
"spült" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #34,379 in our German list, against #44,266 for "säuft". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "säuft" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "spült" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #233,666 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "säuft" and "spült" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "säuft vs surft". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #233,666 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