Which to use
“totes” is an adjective and “tötete” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #26,196
- “totes” frequency rank
- #16,021
- “tötete” frequency rank
- 42217
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | totes | tötete |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs tot | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs töten |
Where the eye mixes totes and tötete
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. totes runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against tötete's 6 (CVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: totes vs tötete
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: totes is [ˈtoːtəs] while tötete is [ˈtøːtətə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42217, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
totes is recorded at frequency rank #26,196, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈtoːtəs]. tötete is at rank #16,021, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtøːtətə].
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 42217, this pair ranks #1,456,120 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of totes vs tötete
Shared letters: et. Private to "totes": os. Private to "tötete": ö.
"totes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "tötete" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- totes ← ottes · toets · totess · totse · tottes · ttoes · ttotes
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "totes" and "tötete" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "totes" or "tötete" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "totes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tötete" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,456,120 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "totes" and "tötete" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "totes vs trees". 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 #1,456,120 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.