Which to use
“befallen” is an adjective and “befolgen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #18,489
- “befallen” frequency rank
- #14,749
- “befolgen” frequency rank
- 33238
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | befallen | befolgen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | von etwas betroffen | (einen Befehl) ausführen |
Where the eye mixes befallen and befolgen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. befallen and befolgen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: befallen vs befolgen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: befallen is [bəˈfalən] while befolgen is [bəˈfɔlɡn̩]. 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 33238, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
befallen is recorded at frequency rank #18,489, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈfalən]. befolgen is at rank #14,749, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈfɔlɡn̩].
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 33238, this pair ranks #1,690,332 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of befallen vs befolgen
Shared letters: befln. Private to "befallen": a. Private to "befolgen": go.
"befallen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "befolgen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "befallen" for "befolgen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "befallen" vs "befolgen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "befallen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "befolgen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,690,332 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "befallen" and "befolgen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "befallen vs befüllen". 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 #1,690,332 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.