tätevsTäternWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: täte is a verb, Tätern is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“täte” is a verb and “Tätern” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#17,434
“täte” frequency rank
#16,304
“Tätern” frequency rank
33738
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature täte Tätern
Definition 1. Person Singular Konjunktiv Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs tun Dativ Plural des Substantivs Täter

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set täte and Tätern apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
täte
6 ch
Tätern

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: täte is [ˈtɛːtə] while Tätern is [ˈtɛːtɐn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “täte” sits inside “Tätern”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33738, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

täte is recorded at frequency rank #17,434, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtɛːtə]. Tätern is at rank #16,304, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈtɛːtɐn].

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 33738, this pair ranks #1,679,170 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of täte vs Tätern

Shared letters: etä. Private to "täte": -. Private to "Tätern": nr.

"täte" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "Tätern" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC

Frequency comparison

täte#17,434
Tätern#16,304

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "täte" and "Tätern" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "täte" is a verb and "Tätern" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "täte" or "Tätern"?
"Tätern" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,304 in our German list, against #17,434 for "täte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering täte vs Tätern

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “täte”; for a noun, it's “Tätern”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “täte” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list