ablenkenvsablenktTell them apart

Which to use

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

#12,014
“ablenken” frequency rank
#47,183
“ablenkt” frequency rank
59197
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ablenken ablenkt
Definition die Aufmerksamkeit auf etwas anderes lenken 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs ablenken

Where the eye mixes ablenken and ablenkt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. ablenken runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against ablenkt's 7 (VCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
ablenken
7 ch
ablenkt

Why the eye confuses ablenken with ablenkt

A purely visual mix-up. ablenken ([ˈapˌlɛŋkn̩]) and ablenkt ([ˈapˌlɛŋkt]) 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 59197, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ablenken is recorded at frequency rank #12,014, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌlɛŋkn̩]. ablenkt is at rank #47,183, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌlɛŋkt].

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 59197, this pair ranks #833,613 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ablenken vs ablenkt

Shared letters: abekln. Private to "ablenken": -. Private to "ablenkt": t.

"ablenken" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "ablenkt" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • ablenken ← abblenken · abelnken · ableknen · ablenekn · ablenkenn · ablenkken · ablenkne · ablennken
  • ablenkt ← abblenkt · abelnkt · ableknt · ablenkkt · ablenktt · ablennkt · ablentk · abllenkt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "ablenken" and "ablenkt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌlɛŋkn̩] versus [ˈapˌlɛŋkt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "ablenken" vs "ablenkt" - which ranks higher?
"ablenken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,014 in our German list, against #47,183 for "ablenkt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "ablenken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ablenkt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #833,613 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ablenken" and "ablenkt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ablegt vs ablenkt". 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 #833,613 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