übernehmevsübernehmenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#16,890
“übernehme” frequency rank
#1,688
“übernehmen” frequency rank
18578
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature übernehme übernehmen
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs übernehmen sich etwas von jemandem nehmen, zu eigen machen; jemandem etwas wegnehmen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set übernehme and übernehmen apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
übernehme
10 ch
übernehmen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. übernehme ([yːbɐˈneːmə]) and übernehmen ([yːbɐˈneːmən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “übernehme” sits inside “übernehmen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18578, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

übernehme is recorded at frequency rank #16,890, classified as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈneːmə]. übernehmen is at rank #1,688, tagged as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈneːmən].

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 18578, this pair ranks #1,916,917 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of übernehme vs übernehmen

Shared letters: behmnrü. Private to "übernehme": -. Private to "übernehmen": -.

"übernehme" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCCV  ·  "übernehmen" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

übernehme#16,890
übernehmen#1,688

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "übernehme" and "übernehmen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([yːbɐˈneːmə] versus [yːbɐˈneːmən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "übernehme" or "übernehmen"?
"übernehmen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,688 in our German list, against #16,890 for "übernehme". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering übernehme vs übernehmen

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 “übernehme” 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