Which to use
“zählte” and “zählten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,557
- “zählte” frequency rank
- #14,219
- “zählten” frequency rank
- 21776
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | zählte | zählten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs zählen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs zählen |
Where the eye mixes zählte and zählten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. zählte runs 6 letters (CVCCCV) against zählten's 7 (CVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses zählte with zählten
A purely visual mix-up. zählte ([ˈt͡sɛːltə]) and zählten ([ˈt͡sɛːltn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “zählte” sits inside “zählten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21776, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
zählte is recorded at frequency rank #7,557, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːltə]. zählten is at rank #14,219, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːltn̩].
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 21776, this pair ranks #1,882,308 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of zählte vs zählten
Shared letters: ehltzä. Private to "zählte": -. Private to "zählten": n.
"zählte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV · "zählten" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "zählte" for "zählten" ever safe?
Frequency check: "zählte" vs "zählten" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "zählte" and "zählten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "zählte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "zählten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,882,308 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "zählte" and "zählten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Zählern vs zählten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,882,308 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.