Which to use
“ablehnen” and “abrechnen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,856
- “ablehnen” frequency rank
- #35,032
- “abrechnen” frequency rank
- 42888
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ablehnen | abrechnen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zu etwas nein sagen; etwas zurückweisen oder missbilligen | mittels einem Rechenverfahren von etwas abziehen |
Where the eye mixes ablehnen and abrechnen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. ablehnen runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against abrechnen's 9 (VCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ablehnen with abrechnen
A purely visual mix-up. ablehnen ([ˈapˌleːnən]) and abrechnen ([ˈapˌʁɛçnən]) 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 42888, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ablehnen is recorded at frequency rank #7,856, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌleːnən]. abrechnen is at rank #35,032, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʁɛçnən].
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 42888, this pair ranks #1,435,315 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ablehnen vs abrechnen
Shared letters: abehn. Private to "ablehnen": l. Private to "abrechnen": cr.
"ablehnen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "abrechnen" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ablehnen" for "abrechnen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "ablehnen" vs "abrechnen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ablehnen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abrechnen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,435,315 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ablehnen" and "abrechnen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abrechnen vs anrechnen". 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 #1,435,315 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.