Which to use
“abfallen” is a verb and “abgefallen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #36,766
- “abfallen” frequency rank
- #37,334
- “abgefallen” frequency rank
- 74100
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abfallen | abgefallen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich von etwas lösen und herunterfallen | ein im Ergebnis einer abwärts gerichteten, fallenden, (sich) lösenden Bewegung entstandener Zustand |
Where the eye mixes abfallen and abgefallen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. abfallen runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against abgefallen's 10 (VCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between abfallen and abgefallen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: abfallen is [ˈapˌfalən] while abgefallen is [ˈapɡəˌfalən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74100, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abfallen is recorded at frequency rank #36,766, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌfalən]. abgefallen is at rank #37,334, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈapɡəˌfalən].
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 74100, this pair ranks #342,403 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of abfallen vs abgefallen
Shared letters: abefln. Private to "abfallen": -. Private to "abgefallen": g.
"abfallen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "abgefallen" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abfallen ← abafllen · abbfallen · abfaleln · abfalen · abfallenn · abfallne · abffallen · abflalen
- abgefallen ← abbgefallen · abegfallen · abgeafllen · abgefaleln · abgefalen · abgefallenn · abgefallne · abgeffallen
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abfallen" and "abgefallen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "abfallen" vs "abgefallen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abfallen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abgefallen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #342,403 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abfallen" and "abgefallen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abfallen vs abfällig". 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 #342,403 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.