Which to use
“billig” is an adjective and “billigen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,251
- “billig” frequency rank
- #9,338
- “billigen” frequency rank
- 13589
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | billig | billigen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | angemessen (recht und billig) | etwas befürworten, begrüßen, gutheißen |
Where the eye mixes billig and billigen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. billig runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against billigen's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses billig with billigen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: billig is [ˈbɪlɪç] while billigen is [ˈbɪlɪɡn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “billig” sits inside “billigen”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13589, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
billig is recorded at frequency rank #4,251, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈbɪlɪç]. billigen is at rank #9,338, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbɪlɪɡn̩].
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 13589, this pair ranks #1,957,006 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of billig vs billigen
Shared letters: bgil. Private to "billig": -. Private to "billigen": en.
"billig" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "billigen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "billig" and "billigen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "billig" or "billigen" show up more?
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 "billig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "billigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,957,006 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "billig" and "billigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "billigen vs billigte". 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 #1,957,006 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.