sollenvssolltetWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#291
“sollen” frequency rank
#6,470
“solltet” frequency rank
6761
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sollen solltet
Definition um das Erteilen eines Befehls oder Auftrags auszudrücken 2. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs sollen

Where the eye mixes sollen and solltet

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

6 ch
sollen
7 ch
solltet

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. sollen ([ˈzɔlən]) and solltet ([ˈzɔltət]) 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 6761, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sollen is recorded at frequency rank #291, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈzɔlən]. solltet is at rank #6,470, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈzɔltət].

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 6761, this pair ranks #1,990,534 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of sollen vs solltet

Shared letters: elos. Private to "sollen": n. Private to "solltet": t.

"sollen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "solltet" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sollenosllen · slolen · soleln · solen · sollenn · sollne · ssollen
  • solltetoslltet · sloltet · sollett · solltett · sollttet · soltet · soltlet · ssolltet

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sollen" and "solltet" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzɔlən] versus [ˈzɔltət]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "sollen" or "solltet"?
"sollen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #291 in our German list, against #6,470 for "solltet". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list