Which to use
“abzulegen” and “abzulesen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,151
- “abzulegen” frequency rank
- #42,989
- “abzulesen” frequency rank
- 64140
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abzulegen | abzulesen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs ablegen | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs ablesen |
Where the eye mixes abzulegen and abzulesen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. abzulegen and abzulesen 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 abzulegen with abzulesen
A purely visual mix-up. abzulegen ([ˈapt͡suˌleːɡn̩]) and abzulesen ([ˈapt͡suˌleːzn̩]) 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 - g in “abzulegen” becomes s in “abzulesen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64140, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abzulegen is recorded at frequency rank #21,151, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌleːɡn̩]. abzulesen is at rank #42,989, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌleːzn̩].
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 64140, this pair ranks #652,019 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of abzulegen vs abzulesen
Shared letters: abelnuz. Private to "abzulegen": g. Private to "abzulesen": s.
"abzulegen" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC · "abzulesen" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "abzulegen" for "abzulesen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "abzulegen" vs "abzulesen" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abzulegen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abzulesen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #652,019 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abzulegen" and "abzulesen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abzulesen vs abzuweisen". 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 #652,019 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.