Which to use
“shot” is a verb and “spät” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,057
- “shot” frequency rank
- #1,335
- “spät” frequency rank
- 22392
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | shot | spät |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Präteritum (simple past) des Verbs shoot | zeitlich fortgeschritten, kurz vor Schluss, gegen Ende |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set shot and spät apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: shot is [ʃɒt] while spät is [ʃpɛːt]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22392, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
shot is recorded at frequency rank #21,057, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃɒt]. spät is at rank #1,335, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ʃpɛːt].
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 22392, this pair ranks #1,874,735 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of shot vs spät
Shared letters: st. Private to "shot": ho. Private to "spät": pä.
"shot" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "spät" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- shot ← shhot · shott · shto · soht · sshot
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "shot" and "spät" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "shot" or "spät"?
Remembering shot vs spät
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “shot”; for an adjective, it's “spät”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “shot” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable