selten
rare
Not occurring or existing often; scarce.
EXAMPLE
Diese Briefmarke ist extrem selten und wertvoll.
This stamp is extremely rare and valuable.
selten
rare / seldom
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Meanings
selten
seldom
At long intervals; not often.
EXAMPLE
Ich gehe nur noch selten ins Kino.
I only seldom go to the movies anymore.
Usage tips
Two grammatical roles
'Selten' can describe a noun as an adjective or describe how often something happens as an adverb. As an adjective, it is declined; as an adverb, it remains unchanged.
EXAMPLE
Das ist eine seltene Pflanze.
That is a rare plant.
Position in the sentence
As an adverb of frequency, 'selten' (seldom) usually comes directly after the conjugated verb and before other parts of the sentence.
EXAMPLE
Ich esse selten Fleisch.
I seldom eat meat.
Typical collocations
In the meaning 'rar' (rare), 'selten' is often combined with nouns such as 'Gelegenheit' (opportunity), 'Gast' (guest), 'Exemplar' (specimen / copy), or 'Anblick' (sight).
EXAMPLE
Ein solches Angebot ist eine seltene Gelegenheit.
Such an offer is a rare opportunity.
Compare with
selten vs kaum
hardly / barely
Selten means that something does not happen often. Kaum is stronger and expresses, for events, that they happen almost not at all. Use selten for a low frequency and kaum when something seems to be almost completely absent.
selten
Seit seinem Umzug besucht Paul seine Eltern nur noch selten.
Since moving away, Paul visits his parents only rarely.
kaum
Seit seinem Umzug besucht Paul seine Eltern kaum noch.
Since moving away, Paul hardly ever visits his parents.
In real life
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