abspieltvsabzieltWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#23,818
“abspielt” frequency rank
#37,339
“abzielt” frequency rank
61157
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abspielt abzielt
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs abspielen 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs abzielen

Where the eye mixes abspielt and abzielt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. abspielt runs 8 letters (VCCCVVCC) against abzielt's 7 (VCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
abspielt
7 ch
abzielt

Why the eye confuses abspielt with abzielt

A purely visual mix-up. abspielt ([ˈapˌʃpiːlt]) and abzielt ([ˈapˌt͡siːlt]) 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 61157, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abspielt is recorded at frequency rank #23,818, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʃpiːlt]. abzielt is at rank #37,339, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌt͡siːlt].

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 61157, this pair ranks #760,237 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of abspielt vs abzielt

Shared letters: abeilt. Private to "abspielt": ps. Private to "abzielt": z.

"abspielt" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVVCC  ·  "abzielt" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abspielt ← abbspielt · abpsielt · absipelt · abspeilt · abspiellt · abspieltt · abspietl · abspilet
  • abzielt ← abbzielt · abizelt · abzeilt · abziellt · abzieltt · abzietl · abzilet · abzzielt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "abspielt" and "abzielt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌʃpiːlt] versus [ˈapˌt͡siːlt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "abspielt" vs "abzielt" - which ranks higher?
"abspielt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,818 in our German list, against #37,339 for "abzielt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "abspielt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "abzielt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #760,237 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "abspielt" and "abzielt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abzielt vs anhielt". 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 #760,237 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list