schlucktevsschlüpfteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#41,449
“schluckte” frequency rank
#43,472
“schlüpfte” frequency rank
84921
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schluckte schlüpfte
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs schlucken 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs schlüpfen

Where the eye mixes schluckte and schlüpfte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. schluckte and schlüpfte follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCCCVCCCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

9 ch
schluckte
9 ch
schlüpfte

Look-alike desk: schluckte vs schlüpfte

A purely visual mix-up. schluckte ([ˈʃlʊktə]) and schlüpfte ([ˈʃlʏp͡ftə]) 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 84921, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schluckte is recorded at frequency rank #41,449, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃlʊktə]. schlüpfte is at rank #43,472, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃlʏp͡ftə].

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 84921, this pair ranks #116,142 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of schluckte vs schlüpfte

Shared letters: cehlst. Private to "schluckte": ku. Private to "schlüpfte": fpü.

"schluckte" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCCV  ·  "schlüpfte" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • schluckte ← cshluckte · scchluckte · schhluckte · schlcukte · schlluckte · schlucckte · schlucket · schluckkte

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "schluckte" for "schlüpfte" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃlʊktə] versus [ˈʃlʏp͡ftə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "schluckte" vs "schlüpfte" - which ranks higher?
"schluckte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #41,449 in our German list, against #43,472 for "schlüpfte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "schluckte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "schlüpfte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #116,142 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "schluckte" and "schlüpfte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schlucke vs schluckte". 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 #116,142 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