Which to use
“Segel” is a noun and “segelte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,583
- “Segel” frequency rank
- #42,800
- “segelte” frequency rank
- 55383
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Segel | segelte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Stück Stoff zur Nutzung des Windes für die Fortbewegung von Schiffen, Fluggeräten und Fahrzeugen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs segeln |
Where the eye mixes Segel and segelte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Segel runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against segelte's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Segel and segelte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Segel is [ˈzeːɡl̩] while segelte is [ˈzeːɡl̩tə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “Segel” sits inside “segelte”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55383, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Segel is recorded at frequency rank #12,583, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈzeːɡl̩]. segelte is at rank #42,800, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈzeːɡl̩tə].
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 55383, this pair ranks #981,680 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Segel vs segelte
Shared letters: egls. Private to "Segel": -. Private to "segelte": t.
"Segel" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "segelte" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Segel" for "segelte" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Segel" vs "segelte" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Segel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "segelte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #981,680 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Segel" and "segelte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "segelte vs spiegelte". 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 #981,680 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.