abzubauenvsabzusagenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#19,113
“abzubauen” frequency rank
#41,627
“abzusagen” frequency rank
60740
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abzubauen abzusagen
Definition erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs abbauen erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs absagen

Where the eye mixes abzubauen and abzusagen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. abzubauen (VCCVCVVVC) and abzusagen (VCCVCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

9 ch
abzubauen
9 ch
abzusagen

Look-alike desk: abzubauen vs abzusagen

A purely visual mix-up. abzubauen ([ˈapt͡suˌbaʊ̯ən]) and abzusagen ([ˈapt͡suˌzaːɡn̩]) 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 60740, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abzubauen is recorded at frequency rank #19,113, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌbaʊ̯ən]. abzusagen is at rank #41,627, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌzaːɡn̩].

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 60740, this pair ranks #775,738 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of abzubauen vs abzusagen

Shared letters: abenuz. Private to "abzubauen": -. Private to "abzusagen": gs.

"abzubauen" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVVVC  ·  "abzusagen" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abzubauen ← abbzubauen · abuzbauen · abzbuauen · abzuabuen · abzubaeun · abzubauenn · abzubaune · abzubbauen
  • abzusagen ← abbzusagen · abuzsagen · abzsuagen · abzuasgen · abzusaegn · abzusagenn · abzusaggen · abzusagne

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "abzubauen" and "abzusagen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapt͡suˌbaʊ̯ən] versus [ˈapt͡suˌzaːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "abzubauen" or "abzusagen"?
"abzubauen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,113 in our German list, against #41,627 for "abzusagen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "abzubauen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "abzusagen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #775,738 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "abzubauen" and "abzusagen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abzusagen vs auszusagen". 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 #775,738 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