Which to use
“absteigen” and “austeilen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,112
- “absteigen” frequency rank
- #37,978
- “austeilen” frequency rank
- 57090
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | absteigen | austeilen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | an Höhe verlieren, nach unten verlaufen, einen abschüssigen Verlauf nehmen | Gegenstände an mehrere Personen verteilen |
Where the eye mixes absteigen and austeilen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. absteigen (VCCCVVCVC) and austeilen (VVCCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses absteigen with austeilen
A purely visual mix-up. absteigen ([ˈapˌʃtaɪ̯ɡn̩]) and austeilen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌtaɪ̯lən]) 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 57090, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
absteigen is recorded at frequency rank #19,112, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʃtaɪ̯ɡn̩]. austeilen is at rank #37,978, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌtaɪ̯lən].
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 57090, this pair ranks #914,856 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of absteigen vs austeilen
Shared letters: aeinst. Private to "absteigen": bg. Private to "austeilen": lu.
"absteigen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVVCVC · "austeilen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "absteigen" and "austeilen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "absteigen" or "austeilen"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "absteigen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "austeilen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #914,856 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "absteigen" and "austeilen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "austeilen vs austreiben". 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 #914,856 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.