gelangenvsgesungenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#3,191
“gelangen” frequency rank
#6,541
“gesungen” frequency rank
9732
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gelangen gesungen
Definition ein Ziel erreichen Partizip Perfekt des Verbs singen

Where the eye mixes gelangen and gesungen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. gelangen and gesungen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
gelangen
8 ch
gesungen

Look-alike desk: gelangen vs gesungen

A purely visual mix-up. gelangen ([ɡəˈlaŋən]) and gesungen ([ɡəˈzʊŋən]) 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 9732, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gelangen is recorded at frequency rank #3,191, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈlaŋən]. gesungen is at rank #6,541, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈzʊŋən].

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 9732, this pair ranks #1,978,563 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of gelangen vs gesungen

Shared letters: egn. Private to "gelangen": al. Private to "gesungen": su.

"gelangen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "gesungen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gelangeneglangen · gealngen · gelagnen · gelanegn · gelangenn · gelanggen · gelangne · gelanngen
  • gesungenegsungen · gesnugen · gessungen · gesugnen · gesunegn · gesungenn · gesunggen · gesungne

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gelangen" and "gesungen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈlaŋən] versus [ɡəˈzʊŋən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "gelangen" or "gesungen"?
"gelangen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,191 in our German list, against #6,541 for "gesungen". 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 "gelangen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gesungen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,978,563 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "gelangen" and "gesungen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Gemünden vs gesungen". 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 #1,978,563 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