Which to use
“gaben” and “gähnen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,594
- “gaben” frequency rank
- #42,551
- “gähnen” frequency rank
- 45145
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gaben | gähnen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs geben | den Mund mit Einatmen und Ausatmen als Zeichen der Müdigkeit weit aufsperren |
Where the eye mixes gaben and gähnen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. gaben runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against gähnen's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses gaben with gähnen
A purely visual mix-up. gaben ([ˈɡaːbn̩]) and gähnen ([ˈɡɛːnən]) 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 45145, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gaben is recorded at frequency rank #2,594, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈɡaːbn̩]. gähnen is at rank #42,551, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈɡɛːnən].
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 45145, this pair ranks #1,362,952 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of gaben vs gähnen
Shared letters: egn. Private to "gaben": ab. Private to "gähnen": hä.
"gaben" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "gähnen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- gaben ← agben · gabben · gabenn · gabne · gaebn · gbaen · ggaben
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "gaben" and "gähnen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "gaben" vs "gähnen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "gaben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gähnen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,362,952 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gaben" and "gähnen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gähnen vs gasen". 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 #1,362,952 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.