Which to use
“tilgen” and “tippen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,367
- “tilgen” frequency rank
- #11,132
- “tippen” frequency rank
- 40499
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tilgen | tippen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | geliehenes Geld (oder allgemein Schulden) wieder zurückzahlen | es kurz mit dem Finger, einem Stock oder Ähnlichem berühren |
Where the eye mixes tilgen and tippen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. tilgen and tippen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses tilgen with tippen
A purely visual mix-up. tilgen ([ˈtɪlɡn̩]) and tippen ([ˈtɪpn̩]) 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 40499, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tilgen is recorded at frequency rank #29,367, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtɪlɡn̩]. tippen is at rank #11,132, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtɪpn̩].
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 40499, this pair ranks #1,506,691 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tilgen vs tippen
Shared letters: eint. Private to "tilgen": gl. Private to "tippen": p.
"tilgen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "tippen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tilgen" and "tippen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "tilgen" or "tippen"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "tilgen" and "tippen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "tilgen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tippen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,506,691 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tilgen" and "tippen" 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 #1,506,691 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.