belebenvsbelügenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#20,523
“beleben” frequency rank
#31,957
“belügen” frequency rank
52480
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature beleben belügen
Definition jemand oder etwas zum Leben erwecken jemandem eine Unwahrheit erzählen, bewusst Lügen verbreiten

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set beleben and belügen apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
beleben
7 ch
belügen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. beleben ([bəˈleːbn̩]) and belügen ([bəˈlyːɡn̩]) 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 52480, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

beleben is recorded at frequency rank #20,523, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈleːbn̩]. belügen is at rank #31,957, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈlyːɡn̩].

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 52480, this pair ranks #1,095,148 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of beleben vs belügen

Shared letters: beln. Private to "beleben": -. Private to "belügen": .

"beleben" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "belügen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • belebenbbeleben · beelben · belbeen · belebben · belebenn · belebne · beleebn · belleben

Frequency comparison

beleben#20,523
belügen#31,957

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "beleben" and "belügen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈleːbn̩] versus [bəˈlyːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "beleben" or "belügen"?
"beleben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,523 in our German list, against #31,957 for "belügen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering beleben vs belügen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “beleben” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list