Which to use
“abhalten” and “abzuhalten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,672
- “abhalten” frequency rank
- #14,484
- “abzuhalten” frequency rank
- 23156
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abhalten | abzuhalten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemanden an etwas hindern, von etwas fernhalten | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs abhalten |
Where the eye mixes abhalten and abzuhalten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. abhalten runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against abzuhalten's 10 (VCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between abhalten and abzuhalten
A purely visual mix-up. abhalten ([ˈapˌhaltn̩]) and abzuhalten ([ˈapt͡suˌhaltn̩]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23156, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abhalten is recorded at frequency rank #8,672, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌhaltn̩]. abzuhalten is at rank #14,484, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌhaltn̩].
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 23156, this pair ranks #1,865,069 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abhalten vs abzuhalten
Shared letters: abehlnt. Private to "abhalten": -. Private to "abzuhalten": uz.
"abhalten" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "abzuhalten" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abhalten ← abahlten · abbhalten · abhaletn · abhallten · abhaltenn · abhaltne · abhaltten · abhatlen
- abzuhalten ← abbzuhalten · abuzhalten · abzhualten · abzuahlten · abzuhaletn · abzuhallten · abzuhaltenn · abzuhaltne
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "abhalten" and "abzuhalten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "abhalten" vs "abzuhalten" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "abhalten" and "abzuhalten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "abhalten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abzuhalten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,865,069 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abhalten" and "abzuhalten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abhalten vs abraten". 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 #1,865,069 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.