Which to use
“abschreiben” is a verb and “Abschreibung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #23,402
- “abschreiben” frequency rank
- #43,683
- “Abschreibung” frequency rank
- 67085
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abschreiben | Abschreibung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | den Text eines anderen übernehmen, kopieren und ihn als eigenes Werk ausgeben | die Verringerung des Buchwerts von Sachanlagen aufgrund von Abnutzung, oder von Forderungen aufgrund von Uneinbringlichkeit |
Where the eye mixes abschreiben and Abschreibung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. abschreiben runs 11 letters (VCCCCCVVCVC) against Abschreibung's 12 (VCCCCCVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: abschreiben vs Abschreibung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: abschreiben is [ˈapˌʃʁaɪ̯bn̩] while Abschreibung is [ˈapʃʁaɪ̯bʊŋ]. 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 67085, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abschreiben is recorded at frequency rank #23,402, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]. Abschreibung is at rank #43,683, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈapʃʁaɪ̯bʊŋ].
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 67085, this pair ranks #551,753 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of abschreiben vs Abschreibung
Shared letters: abcehinrs. Private to "abschreiben": -. Private to "Abschreibung": gu.
"abschreiben" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCCVVCVC · "Abschreibung" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCCVVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abschreiben ← abbschreiben · abcshreiben · abscchreiben · abscheriben · abschhreiben · abschrebien · abschreibben · abschreibenn
- Abschreibung ← abbschreibung · abcshreibung · abscchreibung · abscheribung · abschhreibung · abschrebiung · abschreibbung · abschreibnug
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "abschreiben" for "Abschreibung" ever safe?
Frequency check: "abschreiben" vs "Abschreibung" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "abschreiben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Abschreibung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #551,753 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abschreiben" and "Abschreibung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Abschreibung vs Abschreibungen". 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 #551,753 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.