Which to use
“übertreibe” and “übertreiben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #47,173
- “übertreibe” frequency rank
- #13,296
- “übertreiben” frequency rank
- 60469
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | übertreibe | übertreiben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs übertreiben | einen Sachverhalt in einer Weise darstellen, dass er mehr einer Eigenschaft besitzt als in Wirklichkeit |
Where the eye mixes übertreibe and übertreiben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. übertreibe runs 10 letters (VCVCCCVVCV) against übertreiben's 11 (VCVCCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between übertreibe and übertreiben
A purely visual mix-up. übertreibe ([yːbɐˈtʁaɪ̯bə]) and übertreiben ([yːbɐˈtʁaɪ̯bn̩]) 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) - “übertreibe” sits inside “übertreiben”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60469, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
übertreibe is recorded at frequency rank #47,173, classified as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈtʁaɪ̯bə]. übertreiben is at rank #13,296, tagged as averb, pronounced [yːbɐˈtʁaɪ̯bn̩].
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 60469, this pair ranks #785,823 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of übertreibe vs übertreiben
Shared letters: beirtü. Private to "übertreibe": -. Private to "übertreiben": n.
"übertreibe" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCCVVCV · "übertreiben" · 11 letters · shape VCVCCCVVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "übertreibe" and "übertreiben" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "übertreibe" or "übertreiben"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "übertreibe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "übertreiben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #785,823 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "übertreibe" and "übertreiben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "übertreib vs übertreibe". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #785,823 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.