Which to use
“aufgehen” and “aufnehmen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,355
- “aufgehen” frequency rank
- #2,532
- “aufnehmen” frequency rank
- 18887
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aufgehen | aufnehmen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich öffnen | etwas aufheben, an sich nehmen oder zu sich nehmen |
Where the eye mixes aufgehen and aufnehmen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. aufgehen runs 8 letters (VVCCVCVC) against aufnehmen's 9 (VVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses aufgehen with aufnehmen
A purely visual mix-up. aufgehen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌɡeːən]) and aufnehmen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌneːmən]) 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 18887, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aufgehen is recorded at frequency rank #16,355, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌɡeːən]. aufnehmen is at rank #2,532, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌneːmən].
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 18887, this pair ranks #1,913,866 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of aufgehen vs aufnehmen
Shared letters: aefhnu. Private to "aufgehen": g. Private to "aufnehmen": m.
"aufgehen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC · "aufnehmen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "aufgehen" for "aufnehmen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "aufgehen" vs "aufnehmen" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "aufgehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aufnehmen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,913,866 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aufgehen" and "aufnehmen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aufdrehen vs aufgehen". 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 #1,913,866 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.