Which to use
“befehlen” and “befohlen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,525
- “befehlen” frequency rank
- #16,924
- “befohlen” frequency rank
- 34449
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | befehlen | befohlen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | einen bindenden Auftrag erteilen, etwas Bestimmtes genau befolgend auszuführen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs befehlen |
Where the eye mixes befehlen and befohlen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses befehlen with befohlen
A purely visual mix-up. befehlen ([bəˈfeːlən]) and befohlen ([bəˈfoːlən]) 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 a single letter - e in “befehlen” becomes o in “befohlen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
befehlen is recorded at frequency rank #17,525, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈfeːlən]. befohlen is at rank #16,924, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈfoːlən].
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 34449, this pair ranks #1,663,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of befehlen vs befohlen
Shared letters: befhln. Private to "befehlen": -. Private to "befohlen": o.
"befehlen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "befohlen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "befehlen" for "befohlen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "befehlen" or "befohlen"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "befehlen" and "befohlen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "befehlen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "befohlen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,663,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "befehlen" and "befohlen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "befehlen 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 #1,663,109 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.