Which to use
“abstellen” and “abzustellen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,221
- “abstellen” frequency rank
- #27,596
- “abzustellen” frequency rank
- 39817
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abstellen | abzustellen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aus der Hand legen und auf einer Fläche platzieren | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs abstellen |
Where the eye mixes abstellen and abzustellen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. abstellen runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against abzustellen's 11 (VCCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between abstellen and abzustellen
A purely visual mix-up. abstellen ([ˈapˌʃtɛlən]) and abzustellen ([ˈapt͡suˌʃtɛlən]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39817, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abstellen is recorded at frequency rank #12,221, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʃtɛlən]. abzustellen is at rank #27,596, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌʃtɛlən].
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 39817, this pair ranks #1,526,058 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abstellen vs abzustellen
Shared letters: abelnst. Private to "abstellen": -. Private to "abzustellen": uz.
"abstellen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "abzustellen" · 11 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abstellen ← abbstellen · absetllen · absstellen · absteleln · abstelen · abstellenn · abstellne · abstlelen
- abzustellen ← abbzustellen · abuzstellen · abzsutellen · abzusetllen · abzusstellen · abzusteleln · abzustelen · abzustellenn
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abstellen" and "abzustellen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "abstellen" or "abzustellen" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abstellen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abzustellen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,526,058 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abstellen" and "abzustellen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abzustellen vs auszustellen". 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 #1,526,058 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.