Which to use
“abwenden” and “anwendet” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,145
- “abwenden” frequency rank
- #29,468
- “anwendet” frequency rank
- 47613
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abwenden | anwendet |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (sich) zur Seite wegdrehen; sich von jemandem zurückziehen | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs anwenden |
Where the eye mixes abwenden and anwendet
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. abwenden and anwendet follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between abwenden and anwendet
A purely visual mix-up. abwenden ([ˈapˌvɛndn̩]) and anwendet ([ˈanˌvɛndət]) 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 47613, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abwenden is recorded at frequency rank #18,145, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌvɛndn̩]. anwendet is at rank #29,468, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌvɛndət].
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 47613, this pair ranks #1,278,200 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of abwenden vs anwendet
Shared letters: adenw. Private to "abwenden": b. Private to "anwendet": t.
"abwenden" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "anwendet" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abwenden" and "anwendet" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "abwenden" or "anwendet"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abwenden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anwendet" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,278,200 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abwenden" and "anwendet" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anmeldet vs anwendet". 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 #1,278,200 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.