Which to use
“zerstören” is a verb and “zerstörte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,090
- “zerstören” frequency rank
- #12,643
- “zerstörte” frequency rank
- 16733
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | zerstören | zerstörte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas sehr stark beschädigen und (damit meist) unbrauchbar machen | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs zerstört |
Where the eye mixes zerstören and zerstörte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses zerstören with zerstörte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: zerstören is [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʃtøːʁən] while zerstörte is [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʃtøːɐ̯tə]. 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 16733, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
zerstören is recorded at frequency rank #4,090, classified as averb, pronounced [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʃtøːʁən]. zerstörte is at rank #12,643, tagged as anadj, pronounced [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʃtøːɐ̯tə].
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 16733, this pair ranks #1,933,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of zerstören vs zerstörte
Shared letters: erstzö. Private to "zerstören": n. Private to "zerstörte": -.
"zerstören" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC · "zerstörte" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "zerstören" and "zerstörte" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "zerstören" vs "zerstörte" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "zerstören" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "zerstörte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,933,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "zerstören" and "zerstörte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "zerstöre vs zerstörte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,933,414 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.