Which to use
“Speer” is a noun and “sperrt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,217
- “Speer” frequency rank
- #16,002
- “sperrt” frequency rank
- 31219
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Speer | sperrt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Waffe zum Werfen und Stechen, bestehend aus einer Stange mit einer Spitze (meist aus Metall oder Stein) an einem Ende; leichter als die nur zum Stechen bestimmte Lanze | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs sperren |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Speer and sperrt apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Speer and sperrt form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31219, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Speer is recorded at frequency rank #15,217, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃpeːɐ̯]. sperrt is at rank #16,002, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃpɛʁt].
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 31219, this pair ranks #1,732,458 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Speer" and "sperrt" be used interchangeably?
Remembering Speer vs sperrt
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Speer”; for a verb, it's “sperrt”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Speer” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable