Which to use
“beschäftige” is a verb and “Beschäftigter” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,532
- “beschäftige” frequency rank
- #46,520
- “Beschäftigter” frequency rank
- 64052
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | beschäftige | Beschäftigter |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs beschäftigen | eine Person, die einer nichtselbstständigen Tätigkeit nachgeht |
Where the eye mixes beschäftige and Beschäftigter
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. beschäftige runs 11 letters (CVCCCVCCVCV) against Beschäftigter's 13 (CVCCCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between beschäftige and Beschäftigter
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: beschäftige is [bəˈʃɛftɪɡə] while Beschäftigter is [bəˈʃɛftɪçtɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 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 64052, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
beschäftige is recorded at frequency rank #17,532, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈʃɛftɪɡə]. Beschäftigter is at rank #46,520, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈʃɛftɪçtɐ].
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 64052, this pair ranks #655,065 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of beschäftige vs Beschäftigter
Shared letters: bcefghistä. Private to "beschäftige": -. Private to "Beschäftigter": r.
"beschäftige" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCV · "Beschäftigter" · 13 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "beschäftige" for "Beschäftigter" ever safe?
Frequency check: "beschäftige" vs "Beschäftigter" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "beschäftige" and "Beschäftigter" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "beschäftige" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Beschäftigter" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #655,065 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "beschäftige" and "Beschäftigter" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "beschäftigten vs Beschäftigter". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #655,065 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.