EntfernungvsEntwarnungTell them apart

Which to use

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

#3,434
“Entfernung” frequency rank
#22,321
“Entwarnung” frequency rank
25755
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Entfernung Entwarnung
Definition die Distanz, die Länge einer Strecke zwischen zwei Punkten Aufhebung/Beendigung eines zuvor erklärten Alarms

Where the eye mixes Entfernung and Entwarnung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Entfernung and Entwarnung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

10 ch
Entfernung
10 ch
Entwarnung

Why the eye confuses Entfernung with Entwarnung

A purely visual mix-up. Entfernung ([ɛntˈfɛʁnʊŋ]) and Entwarnung ([ɛntˈvaʁnʊŋ]) 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 25755, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Entfernung is recorded at frequency rank #3,434, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛntˈfɛʁnʊŋ]. Entwarnung is at rank #22,321, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛntˈvaʁnʊŋ].

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 25755, this pair ranks #1,828,472 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Entfernung vs Entwarnung

Shared letters: egnrtu. Private to "Entfernung": f. Private to "Entwarnung": aw.

"Entfernung" · 10 letters · shape VCCCVCCVCC  ·  "Entwarnung" · 10 letters · shape VCCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Entfernung ← enfternung · enntfernung · entefrnung · entfenrung · entfernnug · entfernnung · entfernugn · entfernungg
  • Entwarnung ← enntwarnung · entawrnung · enttwarnung · entwanrung · entwarnnug · entwarnnung · entwarnugn · entwarnungg

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Entfernung" and "Entwarnung" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛntˈfɛʁnʊŋ] versus [ɛntˈvaʁnʊŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Entfernung" or "Entwarnung" show up more?
"Entfernung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,434 in our German list, against #22,321 for "Entwarnung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "Entfernung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Entwarnung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,828,472 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Entfernung" and "Entwarnung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Entfernung vs Entfernungen". 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 #1,828,472 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