Which to use
“anhaben” and “anhalten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,606
- “anhaben” frequency rank
- #9,139
- “anhalten” frequency rank
- 33745
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anhaben | anhalten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein Kleidungsstück am Körper tragen | jemanden zu etwas ermahnen |
Where the eye mixes anhaben and anhalten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. anhaben runs 7 letters (VCCVCVC) against anhalten's 8 (VCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: anhaben vs anhalten
A purely visual mix-up. anhaben ([ˈanˌhaːbn̩]) and anhalten ([ˈanˌhaltn̩]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33745, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anhaben is recorded at frequency rank #24,606, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌhaːbn̩]. anhalten is at rank #9,139, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌhaltn̩].
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 33745, this pair ranks #1,679,003 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of anhaben vs anhalten
Shared letters: aehn. Private to "anhaben": b. Private to "anhalten": lt.
"anhaben" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "anhalten" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anhaben" for "anhalten" ever safe?
Frequency check: "anhaben" vs "anhalten" - which ranks higher?
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 "anhaben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anhalten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,679,003 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anhaben" and "anhalten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abhaken vs anhaben". 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 #1,679,003 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.