unterschreibtvsUnterschriftWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: unterschreibt is a verb, Unterschrift is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“unterschreibt” is a verb and “Unterschrift” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#23,755
“unterschreibt” frequency rank
#7,122
“Unterschrift” frequency rank
30877
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature unterschreibt Unterschrift
Definition 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs unterschreiben meist eigenhändig geschriebener Namenszug, der als Bestätigung unter ein Dokument gesetzt wird

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set unterschreibt and Unterschrift apart are highlighted. They share 11 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

13 ch
unterschreibt
12 ch
Unterschrift

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

unterschreibt and Unterschrift form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30877, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

unterschreibt is recorded at frequency rank #23,755, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈʃʁaɪ̯pt]. Unterschrift is at rank #7,122, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʊntɐˌʃʁɪft].

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 30877, this pair ranks #1,739,316 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

unterschreibt#23,755
Unterschrift#7,122

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "unterschreibt" and "Unterschrift" be used interchangeably?
No, "unterschreibt" and "Unterschrift" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering unterschreibt vs Unterschrift

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “unterschreibt”; for a noun, it's “Unterschrift”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “unterschreibt” 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