Which to use
“Befestigung” and “Belästigung” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,514
- “Befestigung” frequency rank
- #15,307
- “Belästigung” frequency rank
- 29821
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Befestigung | Belästigung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Handlung, etwas an einem Gegenstand festzumachen | nachhaltiges Einwirken auf Personen, was als unangenehm empfunden wird |
Where the eye mixes Befestigung and Belästigung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. Befestigung and Belästigung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses Befestigung with Belästigung
A purely visual mix-up. Befestigung ([bəˈfɛstɪɡʊŋ]) and Belästigung ([bəˈlɛstɪɡʊŋ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29821, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Befestigung is recorded at frequency rank #14,514, classified as anoun, pronounced [bəˈfɛstɪɡʊŋ]. Belästigung is at rank #15,307, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈlɛstɪɡʊŋ].
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 29821, this pair ranks #1,759,631 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Befestigung vs Belästigung
Shared letters: beginstu. Private to "Befestigung": f. Private to "Belästigung": lä.
"Befestigung" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCCVCVCC · "Belästigung" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCCVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Befestigung ← bbefestigung · beefstigung · befesitgung · befesstigung · befestgiung · befestiggung · befestignug · befestigugn
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Befestigung" and "Belästigung" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Befestigung" vs "Belästigung" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Befestigung" and "Belästigung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Befestigung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Belästigung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,759,631 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Befestigung" and "Belästigung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Belästigung vs Belustigung". 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 #1,759,631 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.