beeilenvsbreitenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#25,460
“beeilen” frequency rank
#3,429
“breiten” frequency rank
28889
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature beeilen breiten
Definition (die Geschwindigkeit erhöhen), sich schneller bewegen, schneller machen etwas Zusammengelegtes, das wenig Platz einnimmt, auseinandernehmen und mehr Platz einnehmen lassen

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
beeilen
7 ch
breiten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. beeilen ([bəˈʔaɪ̯lən]) and breiten ([ˈbʁaɪ̯tn̩]) 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 28889, 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]. breiten is at rank #3,429, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbʁaɪ̯tn̩].

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 28889, this pair ranks #1,776,768 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of beeilen vs breiten

Shared letters: bein. Private to "beeilen": l. Private to "breiten": rt.

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

Known mistypes of this pair

  • beeilenbbeeilen · beeieln · beeilenn · beeillen · beeilne · beelien · beielen · beilen
  • breitenbbreiten · beriten · breietn · breitenn · breitne · breitten · bretien · brieten

Frequency comparison

beeilen#25,460
breiten#3,429

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "beeilen" and "breiten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈʔaɪ̯lən] versus [ˈbʁaɪ̯tn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "beeilen" or "breiten"?
"breiten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,429 in our German list, against #25,460 for "beeilen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering beeilen vs breiten

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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list