abbauenvsabratenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#15,281
“abbauen” frequency rank
#41,622
“abraten” frequency rank
56903
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abbauen abraten
Definition bauliche und andere (auch zeitweilig errichteten) technische oder künstliche Anlagen, Einrichtungen, Aufbauten und Ähnliches beseitigen, zurückbauen jemandem raten, etwas nicht zu tun

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set abbauen and abraten apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
abbauen
7 ch
abraten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. abbauen ([ˈapˌbaʊ̯ən]) and abraten ([ˈapˌʁaːtn̩]) 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 56903, 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]. abraten is at rank #41,622, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʁaːtn̩].

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 56903, this pair ranks #922,250 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of abbauen vs abraten

Shared letters: aben. Private to "abbauen": u. Private to "abraten": rt.

"abbauen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVVC  ·  "abraten" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abbauenababuen · abauen · abbaeun · abbauenn · abbaune · abbuaen · babauen
  • abratenabarten · abbraten · abraetn · abratenn · abratne · abratten · abrraten · abrtaen

Frequency comparison

abbauen#15,281
abraten#41,622

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "abbauen" and "abraten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌbaʊ̯ən] versus [ˈapˌʁaːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "abbauen" or "abraten"?
"abbauen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,281 in our German list, against #41,622 for "abraten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering abbauen vs abraten

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 “abbauen” 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