Which to use
“befestigen” and “befestigt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,509
- “befestigen” frequency rank
- #7,578
- “befestigt” frequency rank
- 27087
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | befestigen | befestigt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | an etwas fest anbringen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs befestigen |
Where the eye mixes befestigen and befestigt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. befestigen runs 10 letters (CVCVCCVCVC) against befestigt's 9 (CVCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between befestigen and befestigt
A purely visual mix-up. befestigen ([bəˈfɛstɪɡn̩]) and befestigt ([bəˈfɛstɪçt]) 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 27087, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
befestigen is recorded at frequency rank #19,509, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈfɛstɪɡn̩]. befestigt is at rank #7,578, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈfɛstɪçt].
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 27087, this pair ranks #1,807,556 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of befestigen vs befestigt
Shared letters: befgist. Private to "befestigen": n. Private to "befestigt": -.
"befestigen" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVCVC · "befestigt" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- befestigen ← bbefestigen · beefstigen · befesitgen · befesstigen · befestgien · befestiegn · befestigenn · befestiggen
- befestigt ← bbefestigt · beefstigt · befesitgt · befesstigt · befestgit · befestiggt · befestigtt · befestitg
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "befestigen" and "befestigt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "befestigen" or "befestigt" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "befestigen" and "befestigt" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "befestigen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "befestigt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,807,556 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "befestigen" and "befestigt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "befestigen vs befestigten". 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 #1,807,556 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.