Which to use
“überschreiben” and “unterschreiben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #45,729
- “überschreiben” frequency rank
- #5,124
- “unterschreiben” frequency rank
- 50853
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überschreiben | unterschreiben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas mit einer Überschrift versehen | ein Dokument mit der Unterschrift des eigenen Namens versehen, seinen Namen/seine Unterschrift/sein Zeichen unter ein Dokument / ein Gesetz / einen Vertrag setzen |
Where the eye mixes überschreiben and unterschreiben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. überschreiben runs 13 letters (VCVCCCCCVVCVC) against unterschreiben's 14 (VCCVCCCCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between überschreiben and unterschreiben
A purely visual mix-up. überschreiben ([ˌyːbɐˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]) and unterschreiben ([ˌʊntɐˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]) 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 50853, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überschreiben is recorded at frequency rank #45,729, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]. unterschreiben is at rank #5,124, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩].
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 50853, this pair ranks #1,157,867 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of überschreiben vs unterschreiben
Shared letters: bcehinrs. Private to "überschreiben": ü. Private to "unterschreiben": tu.
"überschreiben" · 13 letters · shape VCVCCCCCVVCVC · "unterschreiben" · 14 letters · shape VCCVCCCCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- unterschreiben ← nuterschreiben · unetrschreiben · unnterschreiben · untercshreiben · unterrschreiben · unterscchreiben · unterscheriben · unterschhreiben
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "überschreiben" for "unterschreiben" ever safe?
Frequency check: "überschreiben" vs "unterschreiben" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "überschreiben" and "unterschreiben" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "überschreiben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "unterschreiben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,157,867 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überschreiben" and "unterschreiben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überschneiden vs überschreiben". 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 #1,157,867 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.