Which to use
“überholt” and “überholte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,161
- “überholt” frequency rank
- #31,404
- “überholte” frequency rank
- 39565
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überholt | überholte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht den jeweiligen Bedingungen der aktuellen Zeit entsprechend, durch Änderung der Verhältnisse oder Weiterentwicklung/Zugewinn an Kenntnissen; nur in einer vergangenen Zeit gültig | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs überholt |
Where the eye mixes überholt and überholte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. überholt runs 8 letters (VCVCCVCC) against überholte's 9 (VCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses überholt with überholte
A purely visual mix-up. überholt ([ˌyːbɐˈhoːlt]) and überholte ([ˌyːbɐˈhoːltə]) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “überholt” sits inside “überholte”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39565, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überholt is recorded at frequency rank #8,161, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈhoːlt]. 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 39565, this pair ranks #1,533,260 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of überholt vs überholte
Shared letters: behlortü. Private to "überholt": -. Private to "überholte": -.
"überholt" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVCC · "überholte" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "überholt" and "überholte" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "überholt" or "überholte"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "überholt" and "überholte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "überholt" 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 #1,533,260 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überholt" and "überholte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überhöht vs überholte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,533,260 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.