Which to use
“abgehalten” and “aufgehalten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,502
- “abgehalten” frequency rank
- #11,167
- “aufgehalten” frequency rank
- 19669
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abgehalten | aufgehalten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs abhalten | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs aufhalten |
Where the eye mixes abgehalten and aufgehalten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. abgehalten runs 10 letters (VCCVCVCCVC) against aufgehalten's 11 (VVCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: abgehalten vs aufgehalten
A purely visual mix-up. abgehalten ([ˈapɡəˌhaltn̩]) and aufgehalten ([ˈaʊ̯fɡəˌhaltn̩]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19669, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abgehalten is recorded at frequency rank #8,502, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapɡəˌhaltn̩]. aufgehalten is at rank #11,167, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fɡəˌhaltn̩].
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 19669, this pair ranks #1,905,883 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abgehalten vs aufgehalten
Shared letters: aeghlnt. Private to "abgehalten": b. Private to "aufgehalten": fu.
"abgehalten" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC · "aufgehalten" · 11 letters · shape VVCCVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abgehalten ← abbgehalten · abeghalten · abgeahlten · abgehaletn · abgehallten · abgehaltenn · abgehaltne · abgehaltten
- aufgehalten ← afugehalten · aufeghalten · auffgehalten · aufgeahlten · aufgehaletn · aufgehallten · aufgehaltenn · aufgehaltne
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "abgehalten" for "aufgehalten" ever safe?
Which is more common, "abgehalten" or "aufgehalten"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "abgehalten" and "aufgehalten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "abgehalten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aufgehalten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,905,883 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abgehalten" and "aufgehalten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abgehalten vs abgespalten". 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 #1,905,883 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.