Which to use
“Abfrage” is a noun and “abfragen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,893
- “Abfrage” frequency rank
- #33,414
- “abfragen” frequency rank
- 66307
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Abfrage | abfragen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Auswahl von Informationen aus einem elektronisch gespeicherten Datenbestand | Prüfungsfragen stellen |
Where the eye mixes Abfrage and abfragen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Abfrage runs 7 letters (VCCCVCV) against abfragen's 8 (VCCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: Abfrage vs abfragen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Abfrage is [ˈapˌfʁaːɡə] while abfragen is [ˈapˌfʁaːɡn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Abfrage” sits inside “abfragen”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66307, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Abfrage is recorded at frequency rank #32,893, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌfʁaːɡə]. abfragen is at rank #33,414, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌfʁaːɡn̩].
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 66307, this pair ranks #577,725 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Abfrage vs abfragen
Shared letters: abefgr. Private to "Abfrage": -. Private to "abfragen": n.
"Abfrage" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV · "abfragen" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Abfrage" for "abfragen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Abfrage" or "abfragen"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Abfrage" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abfragen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #577,725 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Abfrage" and "abfragen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abfragen vs abtragen". 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 #577,725 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.