übernommenvsunternommenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,008
“übernommen” frequency rank
#7,999
“unternommen” frequency rank
10007
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature übernommen unternommen
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs übernehmen Partizip Perfekt des Verbs unternehmen

Where the eye mixes übernommen and unternommen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.

10 ch
übernommen
11 ch
unternommen

Visual trap between übernommen and unternommen

A purely visual mix-up. übernommen ([ˈyːbɐˌnɔmən]) and unternommen ([ˌʊntɐˈnɔmən]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10007, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

übernommen is recorded at frequency rank #2,008, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈyːbɐˌnɔmən]. unternommen is at rank #7,999, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈnɔmən].

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 10007, this pair ranks #1,977,231 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of übernommen vs unternommen

Shared letters: emnor. Private to "übernommen": . Private to "unternommen": tu.

"übernommen" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVCCVC  ·  "unternommen" · 11 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • unternommennuternommen · unetrnommen · unnternommen · untenrommen · unternmomen · unternnommen · unternomemn · unternomen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "übernommen" and "unternommen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈyːbɐˌnɔmən] versus [ˌʊntɐˈnɔmən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "übernommen" or "unternommen"?
"übernommen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,008 in our German list, against #7,999 for "unternommen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "übernommen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "unternommen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,977,231 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "übernommen" and "unternommen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "übernommen vs übernommene". 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 #1,977,231 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