Which to use
“taugen” and “tilgen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,792
- “taugen” frequency rank
- #29,367
- “tilgen” frequency rank
- 51159
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | taugen | tilgen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zu etwas nützlich/brauchbar sein | geliehenes Geld (oder allgemein Schulden) wieder zurückzahlen |
Where the eye mixes taugen and tilgen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. taugen (CVVCVC) and tilgen (CVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between taugen and tilgen
A purely visual mix-up. taugen ([ˈtaʊ̯ɡn̩]) and tilgen ([ˈtɪlɡn̩]) 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 51159, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
taugen is recorded at frequency rank #21,792, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtaʊ̯ɡn̩]. tilgen is at rank #29,367, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtɪlɡn̩].
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 51159, this pair ranks #1,146,218 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of taugen vs tilgen
Shared letters: egnt. Private to "taugen": au. Private to "tilgen": il.
"taugen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "tilgen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "taugen" and "tilgen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "taugen" or "tilgen" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "taugen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tilgen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,146,218 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "taugen" and "tilgen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tilgen vs trügen". 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 #1,146,218 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.