bedeutsamvsbehutsamTell them apart

Which to use

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

#20,183
“bedeutsam” frequency rank
#18,829
“behutsam” frequency rank
39012
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bedeutsam behutsam
Definition wichtig, von Belang sorgsam und vorsichtig

Where the eye mixes bedeutsam and behutsam

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

9 ch
bedeutsam
8 ch
behutsam

Why the eye confuses bedeutsam with behutsam

A purely visual mix-up. bedeutsam ([bəˈdɔɪ̯tzaːm]) and behutsam ([bəˈhuːtzaːm]) 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 39012, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bedeutsam is recorded at frequency rank #20,183, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈdɔɪ̯tzaːm]. behutsam is at rank #18,829, tagged as anadj, pronounced [bəˈhuːtzaːm].

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 39012, this pair ranks #1,548,541 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of bedeutsam vs behutsam

Shared letters: abemstu. Private to "bedeutsam": d. Private to "behutsam": h.

"bedeutsam" · 9 letters · shape CVCVVCCVC  ·  "behutsam" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bedeutsambbedeutsam · bdeeutsam · beddeutsam · bedetusam · bedeustam · bedeutasm · bedeutsamm · bedeutsma
  • behutsambbehutsam · behhutsam · behtusam · behustam · behutasm · behutsamm · behutsma · behutssam

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "bedeutsam" for "behutsam" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈdɔɪ̯tzaːm] versus [bəˈhuːtzaːm]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "bedeutsam" vs "behutsam" - which ranks higher?
"behutsam" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,829 in our German list, against #20,183 for "bedeutsam". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "bedeutsam" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "behutsam" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,548,541 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bedeutsam" and "behutsam" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bedeutsam vs bedeutsamer". 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 #1,548,541 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