Which to use
“überleben” is a verb and “überlebte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,632
- “überleben” frequency rank
- #17,200
- “überlebte” frequency rank
- 20832
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überleben | überlebte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in einer gefährlichen Situation am Leben bleiben | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs überlebt |
Where the eye mixes überleben and überlebte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. überleben (VCVCCVCVC) and überlebte (VCVCCVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between überleben and überlebte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: überleben is [ˌyːbɐˈleːbn̩] while überlebte is [ˌyːbɐˈleːptə]. 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 20832, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überleben is recorded at frequency rank #3,632, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈleːbn̩]. überlebte is at rank #17,200, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈleːptə].
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 20832, this pair ranks #1,893,238 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of überleben vs überlebte
Shared letters: belrü. Private to "überleben": n. Private to "überlebte": t.
"überleben" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC · "überlebte" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "überleben" and "überlebte" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "überleben" or "überlebte" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "überleben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "überlebte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,893,238 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überleben" and "überlebte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überleben vs überlesen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,893,238 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.