bewerbenvsBewerbungWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: bewerben is a verb, Bewerbung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“bewerben” is a verb and “Bewerbung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#4,964
“bewerben” frequency rank
#5,571
“Bewerbung” frequency rank
10535
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bewerben Bewerbung
Definition sich (um etwas/jemanden) bemühen; (nach etwas) streben; versuchen, jemandes Gunst ( die Gunst einer Geliebten) zu erlangen Handlung, mit der man sich um etwas bemüht, das man erreichen/haben möchte

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bewerben and Bewerbung apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
bewerben
9 ch
Bewerbung

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

bewerben and Bewerbung form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10535, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bewerben is recorded at frequency rank #4,964, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈvɛʁbn̩]. Bewerbung is at rank #5,571, tagged as anoun, pronounced [bəˈvɛʁbʊŋ].

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 10535, this pair ranks #1,974,650 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

bewerben#4,964
Bewerbung#5,571

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "bewerben" and "Bewerbung" be used interchangeably?
No, "bewerben" and "Bewerbung" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering bewerben vs Bewerbung

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “bewerben”; for a noun, it's “Bewerbung”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bewerben” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list