Which to use
“selten” is an adjective and “Silben” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #911
- “selten” frequency rank
- #27,936
- “Silben” frequency rank
- 28847
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | selten | Silben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nur in geringen Mengen vorhanden | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Silbe |
Where the eye mixes selten and Silben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: selten vs Silben
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: selten is [ˈzɛltn̩] while Silben is [ˈzɪlbn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28847, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
selten is recorded at frequency rank #911, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈzɛltn̩]. Silben is at rank #27,936, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈzɪlbn̩].
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 28847, this pair ranks #1,777,526 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of selten vs Silben
Shared letters: elns. Private to "selten": t. Private to "Silben": bi.
"selten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Silben" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "selten" for "Silben" ever safe?
Which is more common, "selten" or "Silben"?
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 "selten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Silben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,777,526 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "selten" and "Silben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Silben vs Stilen". 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 #1,777,526 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.