Which to use
“überlesen” and “übersehen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #47,169
- “überlesen” frequency rank
- #4,582
- “übersehen” frequency rank
- 51751
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überlesen | übersehen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas beim Lesen nicht bemerken | etwas oder jemanden nicht wahrnehmen; versehentlich nicht beachten |
Where the eye mixes überlesen and übersehen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. überlesen and übersehen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses überlesen with übersehen
A purely visual mix-up. überlesen ([ˌyːbɐˈleːzn̩]) and übersehen ([yːbɐˈzeːən]) 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 51751, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überlesen is recorded at frequency rank #47,169, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈleːzn̩]. übersehen is at rank #4,582, tagged as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈzeːən].
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 51751, this pair ranks #1,123,404 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of überlesen vs übersehen
Shared letters: benrsü. Private to "überlesen": l. Private to "übersehen": h.
"überlesen" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC · "übersehen" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "überlesen" and "übersehen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "überlesen" or "übersehen"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "überlesen" and "übersehen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "überlesen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "übersehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,123,404 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überlesen" and "übersehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überlesen vs Überresten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,123,404 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.