wählenvswählstTell them apart

Which to use

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

#984
“wählen” frequency rank
#31,381
“wählst” frequency rank
32365
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature wählen wählst
Definition sich für eine von mehreren Möglichkeiten entscheiden 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs wählen

Where the eye mixes wählen and wählst

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. wählen (CVCCVC) and wählst (CVCCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

6 ch
wählen
6 ch
wählst

Visual trap between wählen and wählst

A purely visual mix-up. wählen ([ˈvɛːlən]) and wählst ([vɛːlst]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32365, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

wählen is recorded at frequency rank #984, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvɛːlən]. wählst is at rank #31,381, tagged as averb, pronounced [vɛːlst].

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 32365, this pair ranks #1,709,211 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of wählen vs wählst

Shared letters: hlwä. Private to "wählen": en. Private to "wählst": st.

"wählen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "wählst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "wählen" and "wählst" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈvɛːlən] versus [vɛːlst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "wählen" vs "wählst" - which ranks higher?
"wählen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #984 in our German list, against #31,381 for "wählst". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "wählen" and "wählst" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "wählen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "wählst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,709,211 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "wählen" and "wählst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "wählst vs wärest". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,709,211 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list