absetzenvsaufsetzenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“absetzen” and “aufsetzen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#9,133
“absetzen” frequency rank
#14,008
“aufsetzen” frequency rank
23141
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature absetzen aufsetzen
Definition eine bestimmte Menge an Ware verkaufen etwas (beispielsweise einen Hut, einen Helm, eine Krone) auf den Kopf setzen, (eine Brille) auf die Nase setzen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set absetzen and aufsetzen apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
absetzen
9 ch
aufsetzen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. absetzen ([ˈapˌz̥ɛt͡sn̩]) and aufsetzen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌzɛt͡sn̩]) 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 23141, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

absetzen is recorded at frequency rank #9,133, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌz̥ɛt͡sn̩]. aufsetzen is at rank #14,008, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌzɛt͡sn̩].

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 23141, this pair ranks #1,865,261 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of absetzen vs aufsetzen

Shared letters: aenstz. Private to "absetzen": b. Private to "aufsetzen": fu.

"absetzen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "aufsetzen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • absetzenabbsetzen · abestzen · absetezn · absettzen · absetzenn · absetzne · absetzzen · absezten
  • aufsetzenafusetzen · aufestzen · auffsetzen · aufsetezn · aufsettzen · aufsetzenn · aufsetzne · aufsetzzen

Frequency comparison

absetzen#9,133
aufsetzen#14,008

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "absetzen" and "aufsetzen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌz̥ɛt͡sn̩] versus [ˈaʊ̯fˌzɛt͡sn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "absetzen" or "aufsetzen"?
"absetzen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,133 in our German list, against #14,008 for "aufsetzen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering absetzen vs aufsetzen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “absetzen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list