unterhieltvsunterhieltenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#18,415
“unterhielt” frequency rank
#22,938
“unterhielten” frequency rank
41353
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature unterhielt unterhielten
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs unterhalten 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs unterhalten

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set unterhielt and unterhielten apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
unterhielt
12 ch
unterhielten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. unterhielt ([ˌʊntɐˈhiːlt]) and unterhielten ([ˌʊntɐˈhiːltn̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “unterhielt” sits inside “unterhielten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41353, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

unterhielt is recorded at frequency rank #18,415, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈhiːlt]. unterhielten is at rank #22,938, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈhiːltn̩].

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 41353, this pair ranks #1,481,985 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of unterhielt vs unterhielten

Shared letters: ehilnrtu. Private to "unterhielt": -. Private to "unterhielten": -.

"unterhielt" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVVCC  ·  "unterhielten" · 12 letters · shape VCCVCCVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • unterhieltnuterhielt · unetrhielt · unnterhielt · untehrielt · unterheilt · unterhhielt · unterhiellt · unterhieltt
  • unterhieltennuterhielten · unetrhielten · unnterhielten · untehrielten · unterheilten · unterhhielten · unterhieletn · unterhiellten

Frequency comparison

unterhielt#18,415
unterhielten#22,938

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "unterhielt" and "unterhielten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˌʊntɐˈhiːlt] versus [ˌʊntɐˈhiːltn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "unterhielt" or "unterhielten"?
"unterhielt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,415 in our German list, against #22,938 for "unterhielten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering unterhielt vs unterhielten

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 “unterhielt” 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