Which to use
“ablassen” and “ablösen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,281
- “ablassen” frequency rank
- #20,483
- “ablösen” frequency rank
- 46764
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ablassen | ablösen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Sache nicht weiter verfolgen | eine Aufgabe für jemanden übernehmen, jemanden ersetzen |
Where the eye mixes ablassen and ablösen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. ablassen runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against ablösen's 7 (VCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ablassen with ablösen
A purely visual mix-up. ablassen ([ˈapˌlasn̩]) and ablösen ([ˈapˌløːzn̩]) 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 46764, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ablassen is recorded at frequency rank #26,281, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌlasn̩]. ablösen is at rank #20,483, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌløːzn̩].
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 46764, this pair ranks #1,307,847 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ablassen vs ablösen
Shared letters: abelns. Private to "ablassen": -. Private to "ablösen": ö.
"ablassen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "ablösen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- ablassen ← abalssen · abblassen · ablasen · ablasesn · ablassenn · ablassne · ablaßen · abllassen
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ablassen" and "ablösen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "ablassen" or "ablösen" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "ablassen" and "ablösen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ablassen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ablösen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,307,847 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ablassen" and "ablösen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ablassen vs anlassen". 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 #1,307,847 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.