verkauftvsverkaufteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,143
“verkauft” frequency rank
#8,648
“verkaufte” frequency rank
9791
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verkauft verkaufte
Definition durch Verkauf den Besitzer gewechselt oder an den Kunden beziehungsweise Käufer vergeben Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs verkauft

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch
verkauft
9 ch
verkaufte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

verkauft and verkaufte 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 extra letter(s) - “verkauft” sits inside “verkaufte” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9791, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verkauft is recorded at frequency rank #1,143, classified as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯ft]. verkaufte is at rank #8,648, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯ftə].

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 9791, this pair ranks #1,978,275 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

verkauft#1,143
verkaufte#8,648

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verkauft" and "verkaufte" be used interchangeably?
No, "verkauft" and "verkaufte" 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 verkauft vs verkaufte

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 “verkauft” 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