wähltevsweilteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#8,490
“wählte” frequency rank
#29,422
“weilte” frequency rank
37912
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature wählte weilte
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs wählen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs weilen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set wählte and weilte apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
wählte
6 ch
weilte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. wählte ([ˈvɛːltə]) and weilte ([ˈvaɪ̯ltə]) 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 37912, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

wählte is recorded at frequency rank #8,490, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvɛːltə]. weilte is at rank #29,422, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯ltə].

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 37912, this pair ranks #1,577,836 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of wählte vs weilte

Shared letters: eltw. Private to "wählte": . Private to "weilte": i.

"wählte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "weilte" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • weilteewilte · weilet · weillte · weiltte · weitle · welite · wielte · wweilte

Frequency comparison

wählte#8,490
weilte#29,422

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "wählte" and "weilte" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈvɛːltə] versus [ˈvaɪ̯ltə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "wählte" or "weilte"?
"wählte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,490 in our German list, against #29,422 for "weilte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering wählte vs weilte

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 “wählte” 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