Which to use
“abgeben” and “abheben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,556
- “abgeben” frequency rank
- #12,850
- “abheben” frequency rank
- 16406
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abgeben | abheben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem etwas geben, der es haben soll oder verlangt | etwas von etwas anderem, zum Beispiel auch einer Unterlage oder einem Unterteil, herunternehmen |
Where the eye mixes abgeben and abheben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. abgeben and abheben follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses abgeben with abheben
A purely visual mix-up. abgeben ([ˈapˌɡeːbn̩]) and abheben ([ˈapˌheːbn̩]) 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 - g in “abgeben” becomes h in “abheben”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16406, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abgeben is recorded at frequency rank #3,556, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌɡeːbn̩]. abheben is at rank #12,850, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌheːbn̩].
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 16406, this pair ranks #1,936,113 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abgeben vs abheben
Shared letters: aben. Private to "abgeben": g. Private to "abheben": h.
"abgeben" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "abheben" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "abgeben" for "abheben" ever safe?
Which is more common, "abgeben" or "abheben"?
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 "abgeben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abheben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,936,113 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abgeben" and "abheben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abgeben vs Angeber". 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 #1,936,113 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.