behauptenvsBehauptungWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: behaupten is a verb, Behauptung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“behaupten” is a verb and “Behauptung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,805
“behaupten” frequency rank
#5,061
“Behauptung” frequency rank
7866
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature behaupten Behauptung
Definition etwas sagen, was nicht stimmen muss oder gar unglaubwürdig ist sprachliche Äußerung, mit der eine Tatsache vorgegeben wird, ohne dass dazu Beweise oder Begründungen geliefert werden

Where the eye mixes behaupten and Behauptung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.

9 ch
behaupten
10 ch
Behauptung

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: behaupten is [bəˈhaʊ̯ptn̩] while Behauptung is [bəˈhaʊ̯ptʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7866, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

behaupten is recorded at frequency rank #2,805, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈhaʊ̯ptn̩]. Behauptung is at rank #5,061, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈhaʊ̯ptʊŋ].

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 7866, this pair ranks #1,986,574 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of behaupten vs Behauptung

Shared letters: abehnptu. Private to "behaupten": -. Private to "Behauptung": g.

"behaupten" · 9 letters · shape CVCVVCCVC  ·  "Behauptung" · 10 letters · shape CVCVVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • behauptenbbehaupten · beahupten · behaputen · behaupetn · behauppten · behauptenn · behauptne · behauptten
  • Behauptungbbehauptung · beahuptung · behaputung · behaupptung · behauptnug · behaupttung · behauptugn · behauptungg

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "behaupten" and "Behauptung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "behaupten" is a verb and "Behauptung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "behaupten" or "Behauptung"?
"behaupten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,805 in our German list, against #5,061 for "Behauptung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list