abgesperrtvsausgesperrtTell them apart

Which to use

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

#26,280
“abgesperrt” frequency rank
#40,398
“ausgesperrt” frequency rank
66678
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abgesperrt ausgesperrt
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs absperren Partizip Perfekt des Verbs aussperren

Where the eye mixes abgesperrt and ausgesperrt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. abgesperrt runs 10 letters (VCCVCCVCCC) against ausgesperrt's 11 (VVCCVCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

10 ch
abgesperrt
11 ch
ausgesperrt

Look-alike desk: abgesperrt vs ausgesperrt

A purely visual mix-up. abgesperrt ([ˈapɡəˌʃpɛʁt]) and ausgesperrt ([ˈaʊ̯sɡəˌʃpɛʁt]) 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 66678, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abgesperrt is recorded at frequency rank #26,280, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapɡəˌʃpɛʁt]. ausgesperrt is at rank #40,398, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sɡəˌʃpɛʁt].

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 66678, this pair ranks #565,208 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of abgesperrt vs ausgesperrt

Shared letters: aegprst. Private to "abgesperrt": b. Private to "ausgesperrt": u.

"abgesperrt" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCC  ·  "ausgesperrt" · 11 letters · shape VVCCVCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abgesperrt ← abbgesperrt · abegsperrt · abgepserrt · abgeseprrt · abgesperrtt · abgespert · abgespertr · abgespperrt
  • ausgesperrt ← asugesperrt · augsesperrt · ausegsperrt · ausgepserrt · ausgeseprrt · ausgesperrtt · ausgespert · ausgespertr

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "abgesperrt" for "ausgesperrt" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapɡəˌʃpɛʁt] versus [ˈaʊ̯sɡəˌʃpɛʁt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "abgesperrt" or "ausgesperrt" show up more?
"abgesperrt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,280 in our German list, against #40,398 for "ausgesperrt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "abgesperrt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ausgesperrt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #565,208 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "abgesperrt" and "ausgesperrt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ausgespart vs ausgesperrt". 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 #565,208 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list