überprüfevsüberprüftWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#45,728
“überprüfe” frequency rank
#4,581
“überprüft” frequency rank
50309
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature überprüfe überprüft
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs überprüfen Partizip Perfekt des Verbs überprüfen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set überprüfe and überprüft apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
überprüfe
9 ch
überprüft

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. überprüfe ([yːbɐˈpʁyːfə]) and überprüft ([yːbɐˈpʁyːft]) 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 a single letter - e in “überprüfe” becomes t in “überprüft”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50309, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

überprüfe is recorded at frequency rank #45,728, classified as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈpʁyːfə]. überprüft is at rank #4,581, tagged as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈpʁyːft].

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 50309, this pair ranks #1,178,596 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of überprüfe vs überprüft

Shared letters: befprü. Private to "überprüfe": -. Private to "überprüft": t.

"überprüfe" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCCVCV  ·  "überprüft" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCCVCC

Frequency comparison

überprüfe#45,728
überprüft#4,581

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "überprüfe" and "überprüft" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([yːbɐˈpʁyːfə] versus [yːbɐˈpʁyːft]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "überprüfe" or "überprüft"?
"überprüft" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,581 in our German list, against #45,728 for "überprüfe". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering überprüfe vs überprüft

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “überprüfe” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list