tötetvstötetenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#6,368
“tötet” frequency rank
#29,826
“töteten” frequency rank
36194
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tötet töteten
Definition 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs töten 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs töten

Where the eye mixes tötet and töteten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. tötet runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against töteten's 7 (CVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
tötet
7 ch
töteten

Visual trap between tötet and töteten

A purely visual mix-up. tötet ([ˈtøːtət]) and töteten ([ˈtøːtətn̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “tötet” sits inside “töteten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36194, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tötet is recorded at frequency rank #6,368, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtøːtət]. töteten is at rank #29,826, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtøːtətn̩].

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 36194, this pair ranks #1,621,682 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of tötet vs töteten

Shared letters: etö. Private to "tötet": -. Private to "töteten": n.

"tötet" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "töteten" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "tötet" for "töteten" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈtøːtət] versus [ˈtøːtətn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "tötet" or "töteten" show up more?
"tötet" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,368 in our German list, against #29,826 for "töteten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "tötet" and "töteten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "tötet" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "töteten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,621,682 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "tötet" and "töteten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Tapeten vs töteten". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,621,682 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list