nachgebenvsnachsehenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#20,353
“nachgeben” frequency rank
#14,370
“nachsehen” frequency rank
34723
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nachgeben nachsehen
Definition jemandem von etwas zusätzlich geben nach Information suchen, eine Recherche durchführen, etwas verifizieren

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
nachgeben
9 ch
nachsehen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. nachgeben ([ˈnaːxˌɡeːbn̩]) and nachsehen ([ˈnaːxˌzeːən]) 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 34723, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nachgeben is recorded at frequency rank #20,353, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌɡeːbn̩]. nachsehen is at rank #14,370, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌzeːən].

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 34723, this pair ranks #1,656,803 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of nachgeben vs nachsehen

Shared letters: acehn. Private to "nachgeben": bg. Private to "nachsehen": s.

"nachgeben" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC  ·  "nachsehen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nachgebenanchgeben · nacchgeben · nacgheben · nachegben · nachgbeen · nachgebben · nachgebenn · nachgebne
  • nachsehenanchsehen · nacchsehen · nacheshen · nachhsehen · nachseehn · nachsehenn · nachsehhen · nachsehne

Frequency comparison

nachgeben#20,353
nachsehen#14,370

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nachgeben" and "nachsehen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈnaːxˌɡeːbn̩] versus [ˈnaːxˌzeːən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "nachgeben" or "nachsehen"?
"nachsehen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,370 in our German list, against #20,353 for "nachgeben". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering nachgeben vs nachsehen

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 “nachgeben” 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