beeilenvsbleibenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#25,460
“beeilen” frequency rank
#376
“bleiben” frequency rank
25836
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature beeilen bleiben
Definition (die Geschwindigkeit erhöhen), sich schneller bewegen, schneller machen einen Ort beibehalten

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set beeilen and bleiben apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
beeilen
7 ch
bleiben

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. beeilen ([bəˈʔaɪ̯lən]) and bleiben ([ˈblaɪ̯bn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25836, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

beeilen is recorded at frequency rank #25,460, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈʔaɪ̯lən]. bleiben is at rank #376, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈblaɪ̯bn̩].

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 25836, this pair ranks #1,827,262 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of beeilen vs bleiben

Shared letters: beiln. Private to "beeilen": -. Private to "bleiben": -.

"beeilen" · 7 letters · shape CVVVCVC  ·  "bleiben" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • beeilenbbeeilen · beeieln · beeilenn · beeillen · beeilne · beelien · beielen · beilen
  • bleibenbbleiben · beliben · blebien · bleibben · bleibenn · bleibne · bleiebn · blleiben

Frequency comparison

beeilen#25,460
bleiben#376

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "beeilen" and "bleiben" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈʔaɪ̯lən] versus [ˈblaɪ̯bn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "beeilen" or "bleiben"?
"bleiben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #376 in our German list, against #25,460 for "beeilen". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering beeilen vs bleiben

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “beeilen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list