Which to use
“ebnen” and “eilen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #41,123
- “ebnen” frequency rank
- #25,518
- “eilen” frequency rank
- 66641
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ebnen | eilen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas auf eine Ebene oder die gleiche Höhe bringen; eben machen | schnell gehen, um ein Ziel möglichst schnell zu erreichen |
Where the eye mixes ebnen and eilen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. ebnen (VCCVC) and eilen (VVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: ebnen vs eilen
A purely visual mix-up. ebnen ([ˈeːbnən]) and eilen ([ˈaɪ̯lən]) 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 66641, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ebnen is recorded at frequency rank #41,123, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈeːbnən]. eilen is at rank #25,518, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯lən].
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 66641, this pair ranks #566,433 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ebnen vs eilen
Shared letters: en. Private to "ebnen": b. Private to "eilen": il.
"ebnen" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "eilen" · 5 letters · shape VVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ebnen" for "eilen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "ebnen" or "eilen" 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 "ebnen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "eilen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #566,433 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ebnen" and "eilen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ebnen vs Eupen". 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 #566,433 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.