behältvsbemaltWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#8,031
“behält” frequency rank
#21,189
“bemalt” frequency rank
29220
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature behält bemalt
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs behalten Partizip Perfekt des Verbs bemalen

Where the eye mixes behält and bemalt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
behält
6 ch
bemalt

Look-alike desk: behält vs bemalt

A purely visual mix-up. behält ([bəˈhɛlt]) and bemalt ([bəˈmaːlt]) 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 29220, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

behält is recorded at frequency rank #8,031, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈhɛlt]. bemalt is at rank #21,189, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈmaːlt].

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 29220, this pair ranks #1,770,873 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of behält vs bemalt

Shared letters: belt. Private to "behält": . Private to "bemalt": am.

"behält" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC  ·  "bemalt" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bemaltbbemalt · beamlt · bemallt · bemaltt · bematl · bemlat · bemmalt · bmealt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "behält" and "bemalt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈhɛlt] versus [bəˈmaːlt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "behält" vs "bemalt" - which ranks higher?
"behält" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,031 in our German list, against #21,189 for "bemalt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "behält" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "bemalt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,770,873 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "behält" and "bemalt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bellt vs bemalt". 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 #1,770,873 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