befähigtvsberuhigtWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: befähigt is a adjective, beruhigt is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“befähigt” is an adjective and “beruhigt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#28,090
“befähigt” frequency rank
#5,915
“beruhigt” frequency rank
34005
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature befähigt beruhigt
Definition eine besondere Fähigkeit, Qualifikation oder Talent für etwas aufweisend Partizip Perfekt des Verbs beruhigen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set befähigt and beruhigt apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
befähigt
8 ch
beruhigt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: befähigt is [bəˈfɛːɪçt] while beruhigt is [bəˈʁuːɪçt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34005, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

befähigt is recorded at frequency rank #28,090, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈfɛːɪçt]. beruhigt is at rank #5,915, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈʁuːɪçt].

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 34005, this pair ranks #1,673,175 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of befähigt vs beruhigt

Shared letters: beghit. Private to "befähigt": . Private to "beruhigt": ru.

"befähigt" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC  ·  "beruhigt" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • beruhigtbberuhigt · berhuigt · berruhigt · beruhgit · beruhhigt · beruhiggt · beruhigtt · beruhitg

Frequency comparison

befähigt#28,090
beruhigt#5,915

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "befähigt" and "beruhigt" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "befähigt" is an adjective and "beruhigt" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "befähigt" or "beruhigt"?
"beruhigt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,915 in our German list, against #28,090 for "befähigt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering befähigt vs beruhigt

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “befähigt”; for a verb, it's “beruhigt”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “befähigt” 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