Which to use
“abzuheben” and “anzuheben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #38,557
- “abzuheben” frequency rank
- #35,060
- “anzuheben” frequency rank
- 73617
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abzuheben | anzuheben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs abheben | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs anheben |
Where the eye mixes abzuheben and anzuheben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. abzuheben and anzuheben follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses abzuheben with anzuheben
A purely visual mix-up. abzuheben ([ˈapt͡suˌheːbn̩]) and anzuheben ([ˈant͡suˌheːbn̩]) 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 a single letter - b in “abzuheben” becomes n in “anzuheben”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73617, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abzuheben is recorded at frequency rank #38,557, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌheːbn̩]. anzuheben is at rank #35,060, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈant͡suˌheːbn̩].
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 73617, this pair ranks #355,452 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of abzuheben vs anzuheben
Shared letters: abehnuz. Private to "abzuheben": -. Private to "anzuheben": -.
"abzuheben" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC · "anzuheben" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "abzuheben" for "anzuheben" ever safe?
Frequency check: "abzuheben" vs "anzuheben" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "abzuheben" and "anzuheben" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "abzuheben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anzuheben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #355,452 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abzuheben" and "anzuheben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abzuheben vs abzulesen". 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 #355,452 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.