Which to use
“überholen” is a verb and “überholte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,645
- “überholen” frequency rank
- #31,404
- “überholte” frequency rank
- 44049
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überholen | überholte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit größerer Geschwindigkeit an jemandem oder etwas vorbeiziehen, das sich in die gleiche Richtung bewegt (auch im übertragenen Sinne) | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs überholt |
Where the eye mixes überholen and überholte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. überholen (VCVCCVCVC) and überholte (VCVCCVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses überholen with überholte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: überholen is [ˌyːbɐˈhoːlən] while überholte is [ˌyːbɐˈhoːltə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44049, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überholen is recorded at frequency rank #12,645, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈhoːlən]. überholte is at rank #31,404, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈhoːltə].
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 44049, this pair ranks #1,398,678 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of überholen vs überholte
Shared letters: behlorü. Private to "überholen": n. Private to "überholte": t.
"überholen" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC · "überholte" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "überholen" for "überholte" ever safe?
Frequency check: "überholen" vs "überholte" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "überholen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "überholte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,398,678 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überholen" and "überholte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überhöht vs überholte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,398,678 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.