befragtvsbetrautWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“befragt” and “betraut” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#8,029
“befragt” frequency rank
#18,838
“betraut” frequency rank
26867
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature befragt betraut
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs befragen 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs betrauen

Where the eye mixes befragt and betraut

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. befragt (CVCCVCC) and betraut (CVCCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
befragt
7 ch
betraut

Look-alike desk: befragt vs betraut

A purely visual mix-up. befragt ([bəˈfʁaːkt]) and betraut ([bəˈtʁaʊ̯t]) 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 26867, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

befragt is recorded at frequency rank #8,029, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈfʁaːkt]. betraut is at rank #18,838, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁaʊ̯t].

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 26867, this pair ranks #1,811,125 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of befragt vs betraut

Shared letters: abert. Private to "befragt": fg. Private to "betraut": u.

"befragt" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC  ·  "betraut" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • befragt ← bbefragt · befargt · beffragt · befraggt · befragtt · befratg · befrgat · befrragt
  • betraut ← bbetraut · bertaut · betarut · betratu · betrautt · betrraut · betruat · bettraut

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "befragt" and "betraut" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈfʁaːkt] versus [bəˈtʁaʊ̯t]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "befragt" vs "betraut" - which ranks higher?
"befragt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,029 in our German list, against #18,838 for "betraut". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "befragt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "betraut" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,811,125 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "befragt" and "betraut" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "betrage vs betraut". 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 #1,811,125 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list