Which to use
“versäumen” is a verb and “versäumte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #33,378
- “versäumen” frequency rank
- #44,336
- “versäumte” frequency rank
- 77714
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | versäumen | versäumte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas, das erforderlich wäre, nicht tun | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs versäumt |
Where the eye mixes versäumen and versäumte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses versäumen with versäumte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: versäumen is [fɛɐ̯ˈzɔɪ̯mən] while versäumte is [fɛɐ̯ˈzɔɪ̯mtə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 77714, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
versäumen is recorded at frequency rank #33,378, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈzɔɪ̯mən]. versäumte is at rank #44,336, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈzɔɪ̯mtə].
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 77714, this pair ranks #254,618 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of versäumen vs versäumte
Shared letters: emrsuvä. Private to "versäumen": n. Private to "versäumte": t.
"versäumen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC · "versäumte" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "versäumen" and "versäumte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "versäumen" or "versäumte" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "versäumen" and "versäumte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "versäumen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "versäumte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #254,618 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "versäumen" and "versäumte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "versäumte vs verspürte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #254,618 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.