festlegenvsfestlegtConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#9,717
“festlegen” frequency rank
#32,031
“festlegt” frequency rank
41748
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature festlegen festlegt
Definition einen verbindlichen Beschluss fassen, eine verbindliche Entscheidung treffen; durch verbindliche Regeln, Vorschriften bestimmen, verordnen; verbindlich festsetzen 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs festlegen

Where the eye mixes festlegen and festlegt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. festlegen runs 9 letters (CVCCCVCVC) against festlegt's 8 (CVCCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
festlegen
8 ch
festlegt

Why the eye confuses festlegen with festlegt

A purely visual mix-up. festlegen ([ˈfɛstˌleːɡn̩]) and festlegt ([ˈfɛstˌleːkt]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41748, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

festlegen is recorded at frequency rank #9,717, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfɛstˌleːɡn̩]. festlegt is at rank #32,031, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɛstˌleːkt].

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 41748, this pair ranks #1,470,290 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of festlegen vs festlegt

Shared letters: efglst. Private to "festlegen": n. Private to "festlegt": -.

"festlegen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC  ·  "festlegt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • festlegen ← efstlegen · fesltegen · fesstlegen · festelgen · festleegn · festlegenn · festleggen · festlegne
  • festlegt ← efstlegt · fesltegt · fesstlegt · festelgt · festleggt · festlegtt · festletg · festlget

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "festlegen" and "festlegt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfɛstˌleːɡn̩] versus [ˈfɛstˌleːkt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "festlegen" or "festlegt"?
"festlegen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,717 in our German list, against #32,031 for "festlegt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "festlegen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "festlegt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,470,290 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "festlegen" and "festlegt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "festlegt vs Festzelt". 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 #1,470,290 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