Which to use
“spät” is an adjective and “spült” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,335
- “spät” frequency rank
- #34,379
- “spült” frequency rank
- 35714
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spät | spült |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zeitlich fortgeschritten, kurz vor Schluss, gegen Ende | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs spülen |
Where the eye mixes spät and spült
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. spät runs 4 letters (CCVC) against spült's 5 (CCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between spät and spült
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: spät is [ʃpɛːt] while spült is [ʃpyːlt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35714, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spät is recorded at frequency rank #1,335, classified as anadj, pronounced [ʃpɛːt]. spült is at rank #34,379, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃpyːlt].
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 35714, this pair ranks #1,633,323 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of spät vs spült
Shared letters: pst. Private to "spät": ä. Private to "spült": lü.
"spät" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "spült" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "spät" and "spült" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "spät" or "spült"?
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 "spät" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "spült" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,633,323 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spät" and "spült" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "skull vs spült". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,633,323 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.