AnzahlungvsAufzählungWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#27,617
“Anzahlung” frequency rank
#20,170
“Aufzählung” frequency rank
47787
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Anzahlung Aufzählung
Definition Zahlung des ersten Teiles eines Gesamtbetrages Nennung einer Anzahl/Menge von Gegenständen Stück für Stück

Where the eye mixes Anzahlung and Aufzählung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Anzahlung runs 9 letters (VCCVCCVCC) against Aufzählung's 10 (VVCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
Anzahlung
10 ch
Aufzählung

Why the eye confuses Anzahlung with Aufzählung

A purely visual mix-up. Anzahlung ([ˈanˌt͡saːlʊŋ]) and Aufzählung ([ˈaʊ̯fˌt͡sɛːlʊŋ]) 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 47787, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Anzahlung is recorded at frequency rank #27,617, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈanˌt͡saːlʊŋ]. Aufzählung is at rank #20,170, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌt͡sɛːlʊŋ].

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 47787, this pair ranks #1,272,020 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Anzahlung vs Aufzählung

Shared letters: aghlnuz. Private to "Anzahlung": -. Private to "Aufzählung": fä.

"Anzahlung" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC  ·  "Aufzählung" · 10 letters · shape VVCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Anzahlung ← anazhlung · annzahlung · anzahhlung · anzahllung · anzahlnug · anzahlugn · anzahlungg · anzahlunng

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Anzahlung" for "Aufzählung" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈanˌt͡saːlʊŋ] versus [ˈaʊ̯fˌt͡sɛːlʊŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Anzahlung" or "Aufzählung"?
"Aufzählung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,170 in our German list, against #27,617 for "Anzahlung". 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 "Anzahlung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Aufzählung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,272,020 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Anzahlung" and "Aufzählung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aufzählen vs Aufzählung". 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 #1,272,020 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