Which to use
“überraschen” is a verb and “überrascht” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,384
- “überraschen” frequency rank
- #1,954
- “überrascht” frequency rank
- 8338
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überraschen | überrascht |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemanden durch etwas Unerwartetes in Erstaunen setzen | durch etwas Unerwartetes in Erstaunen gesetzt |
Where the eye mixes überraschen and überrascht
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. überraschen runs 11 letters (VCVCCVCCCVC) against überrascht's 10 (VCVCCVCCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between überraschen and überrascht
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: überraschen is [yːbɐˈʁaʃn̩] while überrascht is [yːbɐˈʁaʃt]. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8338, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überraschen is recorded at frequency rank #6,384, classified as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈʁaʃn̩]. überrascht is at rank #1,954, tagged as anadj, pronounced [yːbɐˈʁaʃt].
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 8338, this pair ranks #1,984,683 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of überraschen vs überrascht
Shared letters: abcehrsü. Private to "überraschen": n. Private to "überrascht": t.
"überraschen" · 11 letters · shape VCVCCVCCCVC · "überrascht" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVCCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "überraschen" and "überrascht" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "überraschen" vs "überrascht" - 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 "überraschen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "überrascht" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,984,683 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überraschen" and "überrascht" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überraschen vs überraschten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,984,683 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.