Which to use
“Abschaffung” and “Abschaltung” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,499
- “Abschaffung” frequency rank
- #28,979
- “Abschaltung” frequency rank
- 35478
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Abschaffung | Abschaltung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | die Handlung, etwas ungültig oder nicht-existent zu machen | die Handlung des Abschaltens; Unterbrechung des elektrischen Stroms |
Where the eye mixes Abschaffung and Abschaltung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. Abschaffung and Abschaltung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCCCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses Abschaffung with Abschaltung
A purely visual mix-up. Abschaffung ([ˈapˌʃafʊŋ]) and Abschaltung ([ˈapˌʃaltʊŋ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35478, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Abschaffung is recorded at frequency rank #6,499, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌʃafʊŋ]. Abschaltung is at rank #28,979, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌʃaltʊŋ].
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 35478, this pair ranks #1,639,042 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Abschaffung vs Abschaltung
Shared letters: abcghnsu. Private to "Abschaffung": f. Private to "Abschaltung": lt.
"Abschaffung" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCC · "Abschaltung" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Abschaffung ← abbschaffung · abcshaffung · abscahffung · abscchaffung · abschaffnug · abschaffugn · abschaffungg · abschaffunng
- Abschaltung ← abbschaltung · abcshaltung · abscahltung · abscchaltung · abschalltung · abschaltnug · abschalttung · abschaltugn
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Abschaffung" for "Abschaltung" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Abschaffung" or "Abschaltung" show up more?
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 "Abschaffung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Abschaltung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,639,042 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Abschaffung" and "Abschaltung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Abschaltung 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 #1,639,042 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.