Which to use
“geben” and “gegeben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #229
- “geben” frequency rank
- #553
- “gegeben” frequency rank
- 782
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | geben | gegeben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem etwas reichen beziehungsweise in die Nähe oder Hände legen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs geben |
Where the eye mixes geben and gegeben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. geben runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against gegeben's 7 (CVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: geben vs gegeben
A purely visual mix-up. geben ([ˈɡeːbn̩]) and gegeben ([ɡəˈɡeːbn̩]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “geben” sits inside “gegeben”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 782, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
geben is recorded at frequency rank #229, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈɡeːbn̩]. gegeben is at rank #553, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈɡeːbn̩].
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 782, this pair ranks #2,005,342 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of geben vs gegeben
Shared letters: begn. Private to "geben": -. Private to "gegeben": -.
"geben" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "gegeben" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "geben" and "gegeben" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "geben" or "gegeben"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "geben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gegeben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,005,342 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "geben" and "gegeben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gegeben vs Gewebes". 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 #2,005,342 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.