Which to use
“anfahren” and “angefahren” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,744
- “anfahren” frequency rank
- #12,443
- “angefahren” frequency rank
- 39187
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anfahren | angefahren |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | losfahren, ein Fahrzeug starten, zu fahren beginnen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs anfahren |
Where the eye mixes anfahren and angefahren
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. anfahren runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against angefahren's 10 (VCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between anfahren and angefahren
A purely visual mix-up. anfahren ([ˈanˌfaːʁən]) and angefahren ([ˈanɡəˌfaːʁən]) 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 39187, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anfahren is recorded at frequency rank #26,744, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌfaːʁən]. angefahren is at rank #12,443, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanɡəˌfaːʁən].
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 39187, this pair ranks #1,543,685 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of anfahren vs angefahren
Shared letters: aefhnr. Private to "anfahren": -. Private to "angefahren": g.
"anfahren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "angefahren" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- anfahren ← afnahren · anafhren · anfahern · anfahhren · anfahrenn · anfahrne · anfahrren · anfarhen
- angefahren ← agnefahren · anegfahren · angeafhren · angefahern · angefahhren · angefahrenn · angefahrne · angefahrren
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anfahren" for "angefahren" ever safe?
Which is more common, "anfahren" or "angefahren"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "anfahren" and "angefahren" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "anfahren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "angefahren" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,543,685 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anfahren" and "angefahren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anfahren vs anrühren". 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 #1,543,685 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.