segelnvssegelteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#9,976
“segeln” frequency rank
#42,800
“segelte” frequency rank
52776
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature segeln segelte
Definition schweben, gleiten, fliegen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs segeln

Where the eye mixes segeln and segelte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. segeln runs 6 letters (CVCVCC) against segelte's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
segeln
7 ch
segelte

Why the eye confuses segeln with segelte

A purely visual mix-up. segeln ([ˈzeːɡl̩n]) and segelte ([ˈzeːɡl̩tə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52776, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

segeln is recorded at frequency rank #9,976, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈzeːɡl̩n]. 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 52776, this pair ranks #1,083,707 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of segeln vs segelte

Shared letters: egls. Private to "segeln": n. Private to "segelte": t.

"segeln" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC  ·  "segelte" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • segeln ← esgeln · seegln · segelln · segelnn · segenl · seggeln · seglen · sgeeln
  • segelte ← esgelte · seeglte · segelet · segellte · segeltte · segetle · seggelte · seglete

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "segeln" and "segelte" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzeːɡl̩n] versus [ˈzeːɡl̩tə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "segeln" or "segelte"?
"segeln" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,976 in our German list, against #42,800 for "segelte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "segeln" and "segelte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "segeln" 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 #1,083,707 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "segeln" 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 #1,083,707 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