Which to use
“betonen” is a verb and “betonten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,294
- “betonen” frequency rank
- #25,473
- “betonten” frequency rank
- 32767
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | betonen | betonten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | beim Sprechen den Akzent auf eine Silbe legen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs betont |
Where the eye mixes betonen and betonten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. betonen runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against betonten's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses betonen with betonten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: betonen is [bəˈtoːnən] while betonten is [bəˈtoːntn̩]. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32767, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
betonen is recorded at frequency rank #7,294, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈtoːnən]. betonten is at rank #25,473, tagged as anadj, pronounced [bəˈtoːntn̩].
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 32767, this pair ranks #1,700,442 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of betonen vs betonten
Shared letters: benot. Private to "betonen": -. Private to "betonten": -.
"betonen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "betonten" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "betonen" and "betonten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "betonen" or "betonten" 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 "betonen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "betonten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,700,442 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "betonen" and "betonten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Betone vs betonten". 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 #1,700,442 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.