Which to use
“abbauen” and “ablaufen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,281
- “abbauen” frequency rank
- #13,298
- “ablaufen” frequency rank
- 28579
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abbauen | ablaufen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | bauliche und andere (auch zeitweilig errichteten) technische oder künstliche Anlagen, Einrichtungen, Aufbauten und Ähnliches beseitigen, zurückbauen | zu laufen beginnen |
Where the eye mixes abbauen and ablaufen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. abbauen runs 7 letters (VCCVVVC) against ablaufen's 8 (VCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between abbauen and ablaufen
A purely visual mix-up. abbauen ([ˈapˌbaʊ̯ən]) and ablaufen ([ˈapˌlaʊ̯fn̩]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28579, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abbauen is recorded at frequency rank #15,281, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌbaʊ̯ən]. ablaufen is at rank #13,298, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌlaʊ̯fn̩].
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 28579, this pair ranks #1,782,264 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abbauen vs ablaufen
Shared letters: abenu. Private to "abbauen": -. Private to "ablaufen": fl.
"abbauen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVVC · "ablaufen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "abbauen" and "ablaufen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "abbauen" or "ablaufen"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abbauen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ablaufen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,782,264 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abbauen" and "ablaufen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ablaufen vs Anläufe". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,782,264 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.