abdeckenvsabzudeckenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#16,341
“abdecken” frequency rank
#33,943
“abzudecken” frequency rank
50284
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abdecken abzudecken
Definition eine Decke entfernen erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs abdecken

Where the eye mixes abdecken and abzudecken

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. abdecken runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against abzudecken's 10 (VCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
abdecken
10 ch
abzudecken

Look-alike desk: abdecken vs abzudecken

A purely visual mix-up. abdecken ([ˈapˌdɛkn̩]) and abzudecken ([ˈapt͡suˌdɛkn̩]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50284, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abdecken is recorded at frequency rank #16,341, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌdɛkn̩]. abzudecken is at rank #33,943, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌdɛkn̩].

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 50284, this pair ranks #1,179,509 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of abdecken vs abzudecken

Shared letters: abcdekn. Private to "abdecken": -. Private to "abzudecken": uz.

"abdecken" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "abzudecken" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abdecken ← abbdecken · abdceken · abddecken · abdeccken · abdecekn · abdeckenn · abdeckken · abdeckne
  • abzudecken ← abbzudecken · abuzdecken · abzduecken · abzudceken · abzuddecken · abzudeccken · abzudecekn · abzudeckenn

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "abdecken" and "abzudecken" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌdɛkn̩] versus [ˈapt͡suˌdɛkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "abdecken" or "abzudecken" show up more?
"abdecken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,341 in our German list, against #33,943 for "abzudecken". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "abdecken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "abzudecken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,179,509 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "abdecken" and "abzudecken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abzudecken vs aufzudecken". 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 #1,179,509 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