Which to use
“spare” and “sparst” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,136
- “spare” frequency rank
- #47,008
- “sparst” frequency rank
- 64144
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spare | sparst |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs sparen | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs sparen |
Where the eye mixes spare and sparst
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. spare runs 5 letters (CCVCV) against sparst's 6 (CCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses spare with sparst
A purely visual mix-up. spare ([ˈʃpaːʁə]) and sparst ([ʃpaːɐ̯st]) 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 64144, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spare is recorded at frequency rank #17,136, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃpaːʁə]. sparst is at rank #47,008, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃpaːɐ̯st].
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 64144, this pair ranks #651,881 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of spare vs sparst
Shared letters: aprs. Private to "spare": e. Private to "sparst": t.
"spare" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "sparst" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "spare" and "sparst" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "spare" vs "sparst" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "spare" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sparst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #651,881 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spare" and "sparst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sparks vs sparst". 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 #651,881 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.