betäubtvsbetrügtWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: betäubt is a adjective, betrügt is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“betäubt” is an adjective and “betrügt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#25,922
“betäubt” frequency rank
#26,780
“betrügt” frequency rank
52702
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature betäubt betrügt
Definition (mittels eines Betäubungsmittels oder Ähnliches) gegen Schmerzen unempfindlich gemacht oder in einen künstlichen Schlaf versetzt 2. Person Plural Konjunktiv II Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs betragen

Where the eye mixes betäubt and betrügt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. betäubt (CVCVVCC) and betrügt (CVCCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
betäubt
7 ch
betrügt

Why the eye confuses betäubt with betrügt

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: betäubt is [bəˈtɔɪ̯pt] while betrügt is [bəˈtʁyːkt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52702, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

betäubt is recorded at frequency rank #25,922, classified as anadj, pronounced [bəˈtɔɪ̯pt]. betrügt is at rank #26,780, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁyːkt].

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 52702, this pair ranks #1,086,613 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of betäubt vs betrügt

Shared letters: bet. Private to "betäubt": . Private to "betrügt": grü.

"betäubt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC  ·  "betrügt" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "betäubt" and "betrügt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "betäubt" is an adjective and "betrügt" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "betäubt" or "betrügt"?
"betäubt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #25,922 in our German list, against #26,780 for "betrügt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "betäubt" and "betrügt" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "betäubt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "betrügt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,086,613 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "betäubt" and "betrügt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "betäuben vs betäubt". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,086,613 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