betrafenvsbetrageWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“betrafen” and “betrage” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#32,447
“betrafen” frequency rank
#38,002
“betrage” frequency rank
70449
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature betrafen betrage
Definition 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs betreffen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs betragen

Where the eye mixes betrafen and betrage

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. betrafen runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVC) against betrage's 7 (CVCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
betrafen
7 ch
betrage

Look-alike desk: betrafen vs betrage

A purely visual mix-up. betrafen ([bəˈtʁaːfn̩]) and betrage ([bəˈtʁaːɡə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 70449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

betrafen is recorded at frequency rank #32,447, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁaːfn̩]. betrage is at rank #38,002, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁaːɡə].

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 70449, this pair ranks #446,029 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of betrafen vs betrage

Shared letters: abert. Private to "betrafen": fn. Private to "betrage": g.

"betrafen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "betrage" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • betrafenbbetrafen · bertafen · betarfen · betraefn · betrafenn · betraffen · betrafne · betrfaen
  • betragebbetrage · bertage · betarge · betraeg · betragge · betrgae · betrrage · bettrage

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "betrafen" and "betrage" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈtʁaːfn̩] versus [bəˈtʁaːɡə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "betrafen" vs "betrage" - which ranks higher?
"betrafen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #32,447 in our German list, against #38,002 for "betrage". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "betrafen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "betrage" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #446,029 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "betrafen" and "betrage" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "betrage vs betrete". 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 #446,029 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