gebotenvsgelogenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#4,039
“geboten” frequency rank
#9,204
“gelogen” frequency rank
13243
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature geboten gelogen
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs bieten Partizip Perfekt des Verbs lügen

Where the eye mixes geboten and gelogen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
geboten
7 ch
gelogen

Why the eye confuses geboten with gelogen

A purely visual mix-up. geboten ([ɡəˈboːtn̩]) and gelogen ([ɡəˈloːɡn̩]) 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 13243, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

geboten is recorded at frequency rank #4,039, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈboːtn̩]. gelogen is at rank #9,204, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈloːɡn̩].

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 13243, this pair ranks #1,959,191 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of geboten vs gelogen

Shared letters: egno. Private to "geboten": bt. Private to "gelogen": l.

"geboten" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "gelogen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gebotenegboten · gbeoten · gebboten · geboetn · gebotenn · gebotne · gebotten · gebtoen
  • gelogeneglogen · gelgoen · gellogen · geloegn · gelogenn · geloggen · gelogne · geolgen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "geboten" and "gelogen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈboːtn̩] versus [ɡəˈloːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "geboten" or "gelogen"?
"geboten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,039 in our German list, against #9,204 for "gelogen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "geboten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gelogen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,959,191 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "geboten" and "gelogen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gelobten vs gelogen". 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 #1,959,191 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