abbringenvsanbringenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,278
“abbringen” frequency rank
#13,761
“anbringen” frequency rank
40039
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abbringen anbringen
Definition etwas entfernen, lösen etwas (unerfreulicherweise) herbringen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set abbringen and anbringen apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
abbringen
9 ch
anbringen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. abbringen ([ˈapˌbʁɪŋən]) and anbringen ([ˈanˌbʁɪŋən]) 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 a single letter - b in “abbringen” becomes n in “anbringen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40039, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abbringen is recorded at frequency rank #26,278, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌbʁɪŋən]. anbringen is at rank #13,761, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌbʁɪŋən].

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 40039, this pair ranks #1,519,737 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of abbringen vs anbringen

Shared letters: abeginr. Private to "abbringen": -. Private to "anbringen": -.

"abbringen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC  ·  "anbringen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abbringenabbirngen · abbrignen · abbrinegn · abbringenn · abbringgen · abbringne · abbrinngen · abbrnigen
  • anbringenabnringen · anbbringen · anbirngen · anbrignen · anbrinegn · anbringenn · anbringgen · anbringne

Frequency comparison

abbringen#26,278
anbringen#13,761

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "abbringen" and "anbringen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌbʁɪŋən] versus [ˈanˌbʁɪŋən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "abbringen" or "anbringen"?
"anbringen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,761 in our German list, against #26,278 for "abbringen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering abbringen vs anbringen

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 “abbringen” 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