Which to use
“gelegen” and “gelungen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,447
- “gelegen” frequency rank
- #3,315
- “gelungen” frequency rank
- 6762
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gelegen | gelungen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nach Ort, Zeit oder Umständen willkommen, recht, dienlich | rückblickend betrachtet: positive Erwartung vollständig erfüllend, mit ganz und gar gutem Ergebnis |
Where the eye mixes gelegen and gelungen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between gelegen and gelungen
A purely visual mix-up. gelegen ([ɡəˈleːɡn̩]) and gelungen ([ɡəˈlʊŋən]) 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 6762, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gelegen is recorded at frequency rank #3,447, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈleːɡn̩]. gelungen is at rank #3,315, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈlʊŋən].
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 6762, this pair ranks #1,990,531 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gelegen vs gelungen
Shared letters: egln. Private to "gelegen": -. Private to "gelungen": u.
"gelegen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "gelungen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "gelegen" and "gelungen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "gelegen" or "gelungen"?
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 "gelegen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gelungen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,990,531 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gelegen" and "gelungen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gelungen vs Gemünden". 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 #1,990,531 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.