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 eye mixes gestehen and gestiegen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. gestehen runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVC) against gestiegen's 9 (CVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: gestehen vs gestiegen
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
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "gestehen" for "gestiegen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "gestehen" or "gestiegen"?
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 "gestehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gestiegen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,944,387 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gestehen" and "gestiegen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gestehen vs Gesteinen". 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 #1,944,387 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.