gehängtvsgelangConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#17,586
“gehängt” frequency rank
#2,152
“gelang” frequency rank
19738
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gehängt gelang
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs hängen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs gelingen

Where the eye mixes gehängt and gelang

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. gehängt runs 7 letters (CVCVCCC) against gelang's 6 (CVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
gehängt
6 ch
gelang

Visual trap between gehängt and gelang

A purely visual mix-up. gehängt ([ɡəˈhɛŋt]) and gelang ([ɡəˈlaŋ]) 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 19738, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gehängt is recorded at frequency rank #17,586, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈhɛŋt]. gelang is at rank #2,152, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈlaŋ].

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 19738, this pair ranks #1,905,131 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of gehängt vs gelang

Shared letters: egn. Private to "gehängt": htä. Private to "gelang": al.

"gehängt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC  ·  "gelang" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gelang ← eglang · gealng · gelagn · gelangg · gelanng · gellang · gelnag · ggelang

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "gehängt" and "gelang" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈhɛŋt] versus [ɡəˈlaŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "gehängt" or "gelang"?
"gelang" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,152 in our German list, against #17,586 for "gehängt". 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 "gehängt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gelang" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,905,131 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "gehängt" and "gelang" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gehängt vs gesaugt". 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 #1,905,131 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