behieltvsbetteltConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#11,183
“behielt” frequency rank
#45,175
“bettelt” frequency rank
56358
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature behielt bettelt
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs behalten 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs betteln

Where the eye mixes behielt and bettelt

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

7 ch
behielt
7 ch
bettelt

Look-alike desk: behielt vs bettelt

A purely visual mix-up. behielt ([bəˈhiːlt]) and bettelt ([ˈbɛtl̩t]) 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 56358, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

behielt is recorded at frequency rank #11,183, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈhiːlt]. bettelt is at rank #45,175, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbɛtl̩t].

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 56358, this pair ranks #943,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of behielt vs bettelt

Shared letters: belt. Private to "behielt": hi. Private to "bettelt": -.

"behielt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC  ·  "bettelt" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • behieltbbehielt · beheilt · behhielt · behiellt · behieltt · behietl · behilet · beihelt
  • betteltbbettelt · betelt · betetlt · bettellt · betteltt · bettetl · bettlet · btetelt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "behielt" and "bettelt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈhiːlt] versus [ˈbɛtl̩t]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "behielt" vs "bettelt" - which ranks higher?
"behielt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,183 in our German list, against #45,175 for "bettelt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "behielt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "bettelt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #943,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "behielt" and "bettelt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "beseelt vs bettelt". 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 #943,386 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