bildenvsbindenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#1,625
“bilden” frequency rank
#6,772
“binden” frequency rank
8397
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bilden binden
Definition etwas zustande kommen, entstehen lassen durch ein Band zusammenhalten

Where the eye mixes bilden and binden

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

6 ch
bilden
6 ch
binden

Look-alike desk: bilden vs binden

A purely visual mix-up. bilden ([ˈbɪldn̩]) and binden ([ˈbɪndn̩]) 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 a single letter - l in “bilden” becomes n in “binden”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8397, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bilden is recorded at frequency rank #1,625, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbɪldn̩]. binden is at rank #6,772, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbɪndn̩].

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 8397, this pair ranks #1,984,461 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of bilden vs binden

Shared letters: bdein. Private to "bilden": l. Private to "binden": -.

"bilden" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "binden" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bildenbbilden · bidlen · bildden · bildenn · bildne · biledn · billden · bliden
  • bindenbbinden · bidnen · bindden · bindenn · bindne · binedn · binnden · bniden

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "bilden" for "binden" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈbɪldn̩] versus [ˈbɪndn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "bilden" vs "binden" - which ranks higher?
"bilden" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,625 in our German list, against #6,772 for "binden". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "bilden" and "binden" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "bilden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "binden" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,984,461 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bilden" and "binden" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "binden vs bindende". 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 #1,984,461 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