Which to use
“abschreckend” is an adjective and “Abschreckung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #35,034
- “abschreckend” frequency rank
- #25,870
- “Abschreckung” frequency rank
- 60904
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abschreckend | Abschreckung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas, das jemanden (oder etwas) fern halten soll, indem es erschreckend wirkt | Vorgang, um jemanden in Angst oder Schrecken zu versetzen und von etwas abzuhalten |
Where the eye mixes abschreckend and Abschreckung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. abschreckend and Abschreckung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCCCCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses abschreckend with Abschreckung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: abschreckend is [ˈapˌʃʁɛkn̩t] while Abschreckung is [ˈapˌʃʁɛkʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60904, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abschreckend is recorded at frequency rank #35,034, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈapˌʃʁɛkn̩t]. Abschreckung is at rank #25,870, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌʃʁɛkʊŋ].
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 60904, this pair ranks #769,558 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of abschreckend vs Abschreckung
Shared letters: abcehknrs. Private to "abschreckend": d. Private to "Abschreckung": gu.
"abschreckend" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCCVCCVCC · "Abschreckung" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abschreckend ← abbschreckend · abcshreckend · abscchreckend · abscherckend · abschhreckend · abschrcekend · abschrecckend · abschreceknd
- Abschreckung ← abbschreckung · abcshreckung · abscchreckung · abscherckung · abschhreckung · abschrcekung · abschrecckung · abschreckkung
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abschreckend" and "Abschreckung" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "abschreckend" or "Abschreckung" show up more?
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 "abschreckend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Abschreckung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #769,558 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abschreckend" and "Abschreckung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Abschreckung vs Abschreibung". 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 #769,558 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.