tauchevstauchteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“tauche” and “tauchte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#38,440
“tauche” frequency rank
#10,185
“tauchte” frequency rank
48625
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tauche tauchte
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs tauchen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs tauchen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tauche and tauchte apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
tauche
7 ch
tauchte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tauche ([ˈtaʊ̯xə]) and tauchte ([ˈtaʊ̯xtə]) 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 48625, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tauche is recorded at frequency rank #38,440, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtaʊ̯xə]. tauchte is at rank #10,185, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtaʊ̯xtə].

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 48625, this pair ranks #1,241,652 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of tauche vs tauchte

Shared letters: acehtu. Private to "tauche": -. Private to "tauchte": -.

"tauche" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "tauchte" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • taucheatuche · tacuhe · taucche · tauceh · tauchhe · tauhce · ttauche · tuache
  • tauchteatuchte · tacuhte · taucchte · tauchet · tauchhte · tauchtte · taucthe · tauhcte

Frequency comparison

tauche#38,440
tauchte#10,185

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tauche" and "tauchte" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈtaʊ̯xə] versus [ˈtaʊ̯xtə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tauche" or "tauchte"?
"tauchte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,185 in our German list, against #38,440 for "tauche". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tauche vs tauchte

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tauche” 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