Which to use
“abschaffen” is a verb and “Abschaffung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,028
- “abschaffen” frequency rank
- #6,499
- “Abschaffung” frequency rank
- 16527
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abschaffen | Abschaffung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas entfernen, außer Kraft setzen, beseitigen | die Handlung, etwas ungültig oder nicht-existent zu machen |
Where the eye mixes abschaffen and Abschaffung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. abschaffen runs 10 letters (VCCCCVCCVC) against Abschaffung's 11 (VCCCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses abschaffen with Abschaffung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: abschaffen is [ˈapˌʃafn̩] while Abschaffung is [ˈapˌʃafʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16527, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abschaffen is recorded at frequency rank #10,028, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʃafn̩]. Abschaffung is at rank #6,499, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌʃafʊŋ].
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 16527, this pair ranks #1,935,124 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abschaffen vs Abschaffung
Shared letters: abcfhns. Private to "abschaffen": e. Private to "Abschaffung": gu.
"abschaffen" · 10 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVC · "Abschaffung" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abschaffen ← abbschaffen · abcshaffen · abscahffen · abscchaffen · abschafefn · abschafen · abschaffenn · abschaffne
- Abschaffung ← abbschaffung · abcshaffung · abscahffung · abscchaffung · abschaffnug · abschaffugn · abschaffungg · abschaffunng
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "abschaffen" and "Abschaffung" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "abschaffen" or "Abschaffung"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abschaffen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Abschaffung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,935,124 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abschaffen" and "Abschaffung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Abschaffung vs Abschätzung". 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 #1,935,124 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.