Which to use
“befinden” and “behindern” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,622
- “befinden” frequency rank
- #14,017
- “behindern” frequency rank
- 15639
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | befinden | behindern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | irgendwo aufhalten, gegenwärtig sein | stören, an etwas hindern, von etwas abhalten |
Where the eye mixes befinden and behindern
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. befinden runs 8 letters (CVCVCCVC) against behindern's 9 (CVCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses befinden with behindern
A purely visual mix-up. befinden ([bəˈfɪndn̩]) and behindern ([bəˈhɪndɐn]) 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 15639, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
befinden is recorded at frequency rank #1,622, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈfɪndn̩]. behindern is at rank #14,017, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈhɪndɐn].
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 15639, this pair ranks #1,942,262 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of befinden vs behindern
Shared letters: bdein. Private to "befinden": f. Private to "behindern": hr.
"befinden" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "behindern" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "befinden" for "behindern" ever safe?
Frequency check: "befinden" vs "behindern" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "befinden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "behindern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,942,262 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "befinden" and "behindern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "befinden vs begingen". 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 #1,942,262 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.