bewältigtvsbewilligtTell them apart

Which to use

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

#20,531
“bewältigt” frequency rank
#15,580
“bewilligt” frequency rank
36111
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bewältigt bewilligt
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs bewältigen Partizip Perfekt des Verbs bewilligen

Where the eye mixes bewältigt and bewilligt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. bewältigt and bewilligt follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

9 ch
bewältigt
9 ch
bewilligt

Look-alike desk: bewältigt vs bewilligt

A purely visual mix-up. bewältigt ([bəˈvɛltɪçt]) and bewilligt ([bəˈvɪlɪçt]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36111, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bewältigt is recorded at frequency rank #20,531, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈvɛltɪçt]. bewilligt is at rank #15,580, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈvɪlɪçt].

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 36111, this pair ranks #1,623,640 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of bewältigt vs bewilligt

Shared letters: begiltw. Private to "bewältigt": ä. Private to "bewilligt": -.

"bewältigt" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC  ·  "bewilligt" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bewilligtbbewilligt · beiwlligt · bewiligt · bewililgt · bewillgit · bewilliggt · bewilligtt · bewillitg

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "bewältigt" and "bewilligt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([bəˈvɛltɪçt] versus [bəˈvɪlɪçt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "bewältigt" vs "bewilligt" - which ranks higher?
"bewilligt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,580 in our German list, against #20,531 for "bewältigt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "bewältigt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "bewilligt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,623,640 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bewältigt" and "bewilligt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bewilligt vs bewilligte". 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 #1,623,640 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