tobtevstötenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#38,447
“tobte” frequency rank
#3,083
“töten” frequency rank
41530
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tobte töten
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs toben einem Menschen oder einem Tier gewaltsam das Leben nehmen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tobte and töten apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
tobte
5 ch
töten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tobte ([ˈtoːptə]) and töten ([ˈtøːtn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41530, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tobte is recorded at frequency rank #38,447, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtoːptə]. töten is at rank #3,083, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtøːtn̩].

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 41530, this pair ranks #1,476,673 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of tobte vs töten

Shared letters: et. Private to "tobte": bo. Private to "töten": .

"tobte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "töten" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tobteotbte · tbote · tobbte · tobet · tobtte · totbe · ttobte

Frequency comparison

tobte#38,447
töten#3,083

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tobte" and "töten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈtoːptə] versus [ˈtøːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tobte" or "töten"?
"töten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,083 in our German list, against #38,447 for "tobte". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering tobte vs töten

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 “tobte” 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