tratvstrotzWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: trat is a verb, trotz is a preposition, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“trat” is a verb and “trotz” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,946
“trat” frequency rank
#624
“trotz” frequency rank
2570
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature trat trotz
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs treten ungeachtet eines bestimmten Umstandes; ohne Rücksicht auf etwas; einer Sache zum Trotz

Where the eye mixes trat and trotz

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

4 ch
trat
5 ch
trotz

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: trat is [tʁaːt] while trotz is [tʁɔt͡s]. 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 (verb vs preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2570, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

trat is recorded at frequency rank #1,946, classified as averb, pronounced [tʁaːt]. trotz is at rank #624, tagged as aprep, pronounced [tʁɔt͡s].

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 2570, this pair ranks #2,002,046 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of trat vs trotz

Shared letters: rt. Private to "trat": a. Private to "trotz": oz.

"trat" · 4 letters · shape CCVC  ·  "trotz" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tratrtat · tart · tratt · trrat · trta · ttrat
  • trotzrtotz · tortz · trottz · trotzz · trozt · trrotz · trtoz · ttrotz

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "trat" and "trotz" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "trat" is a verb and "trotz" a preposition, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "trat" or "trotz"?
"trotz" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #624 in our German list, against #1,946 for "trat". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

You've compared "trat" and "trotz". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "trat" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "trotz" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #2,002,046 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "trat" and "trotz" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "taut vs trat". 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

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list