Which to use
“betreiben” and “betreibt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,564
- “betreiben” frequency rank
- #4,331
- “betreibt” frequency rank
- 7895
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | betreiben | betreibt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas am Laufen halten | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs betreiben |
Where the eye mixes betreiben and betreibt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. betreiben runs 9 letters (CVCCVVCVC) against betreibt's 8 (CVCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: betreiben vs betreibt
A purely visual mix-up. betreiben ([bəˈtʁaɪ̯bn̩]) and betreibt ([bəˈtʁaɪ̯pt]) 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 7895, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
betreiben is recorded at frequency rank #3,564, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁaɪ̯bn̩]. betreibt is at rank #4,331, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈtʁaɪ̯pt].
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 7895, this pair ranks #1,986,448 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of betreiben vs betreibt
Shared letters: beirt. Private to "betreiben": n. Private to "betreibt": -.
"betreiben" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC · "betreibt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "betreiben" and "betreibt" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "betreiben" vs "betreibt" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "betreiben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "betreibt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,986,448 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "betreiben" and "betreibt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bereisen vs betreiben". 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 #1,986,448 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.