gestehenvsgestiegenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,859
“gestehen” frequency rank
#4,514
“gestiegen” frequency rank
15373
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gestehen gestiegen
Definition etwas offen zugeben; ein Geständnis ablegen Partizip Perfekt des Verbs steigen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gestehen and gestiegen apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
gestehen
9 ch
gestiegen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. gestehen ([ɡəˈʃteːən]) and gestiegen ([ɡəˈʃtiːɡn̩]) 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 15373, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gestehen is recorded at frequency rank #10,859, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈʃteːən]. gestiegen is at rank #4,514, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈʃtiːɡn̩].

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 15373, this pair ranks #1,944,387 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of gestehen vs gestiegen

Shared letters: egnst. Private to "gestehen": h. Private to "gestiegen": i.

"gestehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "gestiegen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gestehenegstehen · gesethen · gesstehen · gesteehn · gestehenn · gestehhen · gestehne · gestheen
  • gestiegenegstiegen · gesitegen · gesstiegen · gesteigen · gestieegn · gestiegenn · gestieggen · gestiegne

Frequency comparison

gestehen#10,859
gestiegen#4,514

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gestehen" and "gestiegen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈʃteːən] versus [ɡəˈʃtiːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "gestehen" or "gestiegen"?
"gestiegen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,514 in our German list, against #10,859 for "gestehen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering gestehen vs gestiegen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “gestehen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list