AbbildungvsAbfindungWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#7,561
“Abbildung” frequency rank
#22,991
“Abfindung” frequency rank
30552
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Abbildung Abfindung
Definition etwas bildlich, grafisch, durch optische oder elektronische Verfahren oder symbolisch Dargestelltes, eine mehr oder weniger gute Kopie des eigentlichen, realen Bildes realer Gegenstände, Personen, Situationen, … Entschädigungszahlung für den Rücktritt vom Arbeitsplatz

Where the eye mixes Abbildung and Abfindung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Abbildung and Abfindung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

9 ch
Abbildung
9 ch
Abfindung

Visual trap between Abbildung and Abfindung

A purely visual mix-up. Abbildung ([ˈapˌbɪldʊŋ]) and Abfindung ([ˈapˌfɪndʊŋ]) 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 30552, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Abbildung is recorded at frequency rank #7,561, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌbɪldʊŋ]. Abfindung is at rank #22,991, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌfɪndʊŋ].

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 30552, this pair ranks #1,745,603 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Abbildung vs Abfindung

Shared letters: abdginu. Private to "Abbildung": l. Private to "Abfindung": f.

"Abbildung" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC  ·  "Abfindung" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Abbildung ← abbidlung · abbilddung · abbildnug · abbildugn · abbildungg · abbildunng · abbilldung · abbiludng
  • Abfindung ← abbfindung · abffindung · abfidnung · abfinddung · abfindnug · abfindugn · abfindungg · abfindunng

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Abbildung" and "Abfindung" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌbɪldʊŋ] versus [ˈapˌfɪndʊŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Abbildung" vs "Abfindung" - which ranks higher?
"Abbildung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,561 in our German list, against #22,991 for "Abfindung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "Abbildung" and "Abfindung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Abbildung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Abfindung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,745,603 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Abbildung" and "Abfindung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Abfindung vs Abwendung". 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 #1,745,603 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list