Which to use
“begnügen” and “betrügen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,184
- “begnügen” frequency rank
- #17,830
- “betrügen” frequency rank
- 36014
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | begnügen | betrügen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit etwas Einfachem oder mit weniger zufrieden sein, als man haben könnte | jemandem absichtlich und böswillig die Unwahrheit sagen |
Where the eye mixes begnügen and betrügen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. begnügen and betrügen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: begnügen vs betrügen
A purely visual mix-up. begnügen ([bəˈɡnyːɡn̩]) and betrügen ([bəˈtʁyːɡn̩]) 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 36014, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
begnügen is recorded at frequency rank #18,184, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈɡnyːɡn̩]. betrügen is at rank #17,830, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁyːɡn̩].
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 36014, this pair ranks #1,626,112 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of begnügen vs betrügen
Shared letters: begnü. Private to "begnügen": -. Private to "betrügen": rt.
"begnügen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC · "betrügen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "begnügen" and "betrügen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "begnügen" or "betrügen" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "begnügen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "betrügen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,626,112 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "begnügen" and "betrügen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "betäuben vs betrügen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,626,112 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.