Which to use
“befahl” and “bezahle” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,642
- “befahl” frequency rank
- #15,316
- “bezahle” frequency rank
- 31958
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | befahl | bezahle |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs befehlen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bezahlen |
Where the eye mixes befahl and bezahle
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between befahl and bezahle
A purely visual mix-up. befahl ([bəˈfaːl]) and bezahle ([bəˈt͡saːlə]) 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 31958, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
befahl is recorded at frequency rank #16,642, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈfaːl]. bezahle is at rank #15,316, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈt͡saːlə].
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 31958, this pair ranks #1,717,670 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of befahl vs bezahle
Shared letters: abehl. Private to "befahl": f. Private to "bezahle": z.
"befahl" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "bezahle" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "befahl" for "bezahle" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "befahl" or "bezahle" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "befahl" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bezahle" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,717,670 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "befahl" and "bezahle" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "befahl vs befuhr". 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 #1,717,670 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.