übersiehtvsüberstehtWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#25,862
“übersieht” frequency rank
#33,938
“übersteht” frequency rank
59800
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature übersieht übersteht
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs übersehen 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs überstehen

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
übersieht
9 ch
übersteht

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. übersieht ([ˌyːbɐˈziːt]) and übersteht ([ˌyːbɐˈʃteːt]) 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 - i in “übersieht” becomes t in “übersteht”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59800, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

übersieht is recorded at frequency rank #25,862, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈziːt]. übersteht is at rank #33,938, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈʃteːt].

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 59800, this pair ranks #810,881 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of übersieht vs übersteht

Shared letters: behrstü. Private to "übersieht": i. Private to "übersteht": -.

"übersieht" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVVCC  ·  "übersteht" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCCVCC

Frequency comparison

übersieht#25,862
übersteht#33,938

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "übersieht" and "übersteht" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˌyːbɐˈziːt] versus [ˌyːbɐˈʃteːt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "übersieht" or "übersteht"?
"übersieht" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #25,862 in our German list, against #33,938 for "übersteht". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering übersieht vs übersteht

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 “übersieht” 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