reaktivierenvsReaktivierungWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: reaktivieren is a verb, Reaktivierung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“reaktivieren” is a verb and “Reaktivierung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#48,409
“reaktivieren” frequency rank
#45,537
“Reaktivierung” frequency rank
93946
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature reaktivieren Reaktivierung
Definition jemand, der bereits im Ruhestand ist/etwas beendet hat, wieder zu einer Tätigkeiten/einem Dienst veranlassen Erweckung aus dem Ruhezustand, erneutes Aktivieren

Where the eye mixes reaktivieren and Reaktivierung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. reaktivieren runs 12 letters (CVVCCVCVVCVC) against Reaktivierung's 13 (CVVCCVCVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

12 ch
reaktivieren
13 ch
Reaktivierung

Why the eye confuses reaktivieren with Reaktivierung

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: reaktivieren is [ʁeaktiˈviːʁən] while Reaktivierung is [ʁeaktiˈviːʁʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 93946, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

reaktivieren is recorded at frequency rank #48,409, classified as averb, pronounced [ʁeaktiˈviːʁən]. Reaktivierung is at rank #45,537, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʁeaktiˈviːʁʊŋ].

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 93946, this pair ranks #19,662 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of reaktivieren vs Reaktivierung

Shared letters: aeiknrtv. Private to "reaktivieren": -. Private to "Reaktivierung": gu.

"reaktivieren" · 12 letters · shape CVVCCVCVVCVC  ·  "Reaktivierung" · 13 letters · shape CVVCCVCVVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • reaktivieren ← eraktivieren · raektivieren · reakitvieren · reakktivieren · reaktiiveren · reaktiveiren · reaktivieern · reaktivierenn
  • Reaktivierung ← eraktivierung · raektivierung · reakitvierung · reakktivierung · reaktiiverung · reaktiveirung · reaktiviernug · reaktivierrung

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "reaktivieren" and "Reaktivierung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "reaktivieren" is a verb and "Reaktivierung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "reaktivieren" or "Reaktivierung" show up more?
"Reaktivierung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #45,537 in our German list, against #48,409 for "reaktivieren". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "reaktivieren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Reaktivierung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #19,662 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "reaktivieren" and "Reaktivierung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "reaktivieren vs reaktiviert". 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 #19,662 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