Which to use
“bestellen” is a verb and “Bestellung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,026
- “bestellen” frequency rank
- #6,047
- “Bestellung” frequency rank
- 9073
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bestellen | Bestellung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Ware oder Dienstleistung zur Lieferung in Auftrag geben | Anforderung eines Produkts oder einer Dienstleistung |
Where the eye mixes bestellen and Bestellung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. bestellen runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against Bestellung's 10 (CVCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses bestellen with Bestellung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bestellen is [bəˈʃtɛlən] while Bestellung is [bəˈʃtɛlʊŋ]. 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 9073, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bestellen is recorded at frequency rank #3,026, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈʃtɛlən]. Bestellung is at rank #6,047, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈʃtɛlʊŋ].
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 9073, this pair ranks #1,981,575 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of bestellen vs Bestellung
Shared letters: belnst. Private to "bestellen": -. Private to "Bestellung": gu.
"bestellen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "Bestellung" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- bestellen ← bbestellen · besetllen · besstellen · besteleln · bestelen · bestellenn · bestellne · bestlelen
- Bestellung ← bbestellung · besetllung · besstellung · bestellnug · bestellugn · bestellungg · bestellunng · bestelulng
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bestellen" and "Bestellung" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "bestellen" or "Bestellung" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "bestellen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Bestellung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,981,575 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bestellen" and "Bestellung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bestellen vs bestohlen". 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 #1,981,575 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.