abgehenvsansehenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#20,481
“abgehen” frequency rank
#1,758
“ansehen” frequency rank
22239
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abgehen ansehen
Definition eine bestimmte Stelle, Ort verlassen, weggehen den Blick bewusst auf etwas oder jemanden richten

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set abgehen and ansehen apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
abgehen
7 ch
ansehen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. abgehen ([ˈapˌɡeːən]) and ansehen ([ˈanˌzeːən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22239, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abgehen is recorded at frequency rank #20,481, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌɡeːən]. ansehen is at rank #1,758, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌzeːən].

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 22239, this pair ranks #1,876,605 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of abgehen vs ansehen

Shared letters: aehn. Private to "abgehen": bg. Private to "ansehen": s.

"abgehen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "ansehen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abgehenabbgehen · abeghen · abgeehn · abgehenn · abgehhen · abgehne · abggehen · abgheen
  • ansehenaneshen · annsehen · anseehn · ansehenn · ansehhen · ansehne · ansheen · anssehen

Frequency comparison

abgehen#20,481
ansehen#1,758

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "abgehen" and "ansehen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌɡeːən] versus [ˈanˌzeːən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "abgehen" or "ansehen"?
"ansehen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,758 in our German list, against #20,481 for "abgehen". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering abgehen vs ansehen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “abgehen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list