Which to use
“beabsichtigt” is an adjective and “besichtigt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,242
- “beabsichtigt” frequency rank
- #16,934
- “besichtigt” frequency rank
- 29176
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | beabsichtigt | besichtigt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit Absicht | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs besichtigen |
Where the eye mixes beabsichtigt and besichtigt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. beabsichtigt runs 12 letters (CVVCCVCCCVCC) against besichtigt's 10 (CVCVCCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between beabsichtigt and besichtigt
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: beabsichtigt is [bəˈʔapzɪçtɪçt] while besichtigt is [bəˈzɪçtɪçt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29176, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
beabsichtigt is recorded at frequency rank #12,242, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈʔapzɪçtɪçt]. besichtigt is at rank #16,934, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈzɪçtɪçt].
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 29176, this pair ranks #1,771,624 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of beabsichtigt vs besichtigt
Shared letters: bceghist. Private to "beabsichtigt": a. Private to "besichtigt": -.
"beabsichtigt" · 12 letters · shape CVVCCVCCCVCC · "besichtigt" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- beabsichtigt ← baebsichtigt · bbeabsichtigt · beabbsichtigt · beabischtigt · beabscihtigt · beabsicchtigt · beabsichhtigt · beabsichitgt
- besichtigt ← bbesichtigt · beischtigt · bescihtigt · besicchtigt · besichhtigt · besichitgt · besichtgit · besichtiggt
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "beabsichtigt" and "besichtigt" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "beabsichtigt" or "besichtigt"?
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 "beabsichtigt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "besichtigt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,771,624 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "beabsichtigt" and "besichtigt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "berichtigt vs besichtigt". 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 #1,771,624 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.