Which to use
“abnehmen” and “aufnehmen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,758
- “abnehmen” frequency rank
- #2,532
- “aufnehmen” frequency rank
- 7290
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abnehmen | aufnehmen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | von einer Stelle entfernen | etwas aufheben, an sich nehmen oder zu sich nehmen |
Where the eye mixes abnehmen and aufnehmen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. abnehmen runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against aufnehmen's 9 (VVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: abnehmen vs aufnehmen
A purely visual mix-up. abnehmen ([ˈapˌneːmən]) and aufnehmen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌneːmən]) 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 7290, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abnehmen is recorded at frequency rank #4,758, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌneːmən]. aufnehmen is at rank #2,532, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌneːmən].
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 7290, this pair ranks #1,988,710 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abnehmen vs aufnehmen
Shared letters: aehmn. Private to "abnehmen": b. Private to "aufnehmen": fu.
"abnehmen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "aufnehmen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abnehmen" and "aufnehmen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "abnehmen" vs "aufnehmen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "abnehmen" and "aufnehmen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "abnehmen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aufnehmen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,988,710 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abnehmen" and "aufnehmen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abnehmen vs ausnehmen". 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 #1,988,710 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.