Which to use
“beschäftigt” is an adjective and “Beschäftigter” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,347
- “beschäftigt” frequency rank
- #46,520
- “Beschäftigter” frequency rank
- 47867
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | beschäftigt | Beschäftigter |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ausgelastet durch (bezahlte) Tätigkeit | eine Person, die einer nichtselbstständigen Tätigkeit nachgeht |
Where the eye mixes beschäftigt and Beschäftigter
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. beschäftigt runs 11 letters (CVCCCVCCVCC) against Beschäftigter's 13 (CVCCCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between beschäftigt and Beschäftigter
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: beschäftigt is [bəˈʃɛftɪçt] while Beschäftigter is [bəˈʃɛftɪçtɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “beschäftigt” sits inside “Beschäftigter”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47867, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
beschäftigt is recorded at frequency rank #1,347, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈʃɛftɪçt]. 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 47867, this pair ranks #1,269,129 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of beschäftigt vs Beschäftigter
Shared letters: bcefghistä. Private to "beschäftigt": -. Private to "Beschäftigter": r.
"beschäftigt" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCC · "Beschäftigter" · 13 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "beschäftigt" for "Beschäftigter" ever safe?
Frequency check: "beschäftigt" vs "Beschäftigter" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "beschäftigt" 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 #1,269,129 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "beschäftigt" and "Beschäftigter" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "beschäftige vs Beschäftigter". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,269,129 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.