Which to use
“spielend” is an adjective and “spielten” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,948
- “spielend” frequency rank
- #4,464
- “spielten” frequency rank
- 32412
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spielend | spielten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | so, dass es jemandem sehr leicht fällt, etwas zu erledigen, zu schaffen oder zu bewältigen; ohne Anstrengung, ohne Mühe, wie im Spiel | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs spielen |
Where the eye mixes spielend and spielten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. spielend (CCVVCVCC) and spielten (CCVVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between spielend and spielten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: spielend is [ˈʃpiːlənt] while spielten is [ˈʃpiːltn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32412, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spielend is recorded at frequency rank #27,948, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃpiːlənt]. spielten is at rank #4,464, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃpiːltn̩].
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 32412, this pair ranks #1,708,132 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of spielend vs spielten
Shared letters: eilnps. Private to "spielend": d. Private to "spielten": t.
"spielend" · 8 letters · shape CCVVCVCC · "spielten" · 8 letters · shape CCVVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "spielend" for "spielten" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "spielend" or "spielten" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "spielend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "spielten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,708,132 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spielend" and "spielten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "spielend vs Spieles". 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 #1,708,132 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.