Which to use
“überwiegen” is a verb and “überwiegende” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,069
- “überwiegen” frequency rank
- #15,016
- “überwiegende” frequency rank
- 31085
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | überwiegen | überwiegende |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | die Mehrheit haben, sich deshalb durchsetzen und die Oberhand gewinnen | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs überwiegend |
Where the eye mixes überwiegen and überwiegende
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. überwiegen runs 10 letters (VCVCCVVCVC) against überwiegende's 12 (VCVCCVVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses überwiegen with überwiegende
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: überwiegen is [ˌyːbɐˈviːɡn̩] while überwiegende is [ˈyːbɐˌviːɡn̩də]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “überwiegen” sits inside “überwiegende”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31085, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
überwiegen is recorded at frequency rank #16,069, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌyːbɐˈviːɡn̩]. überwiegende is at rank #15,016, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈyːbɐˌviːɡn̩də].
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 31085, this pair ranks #1,735,100 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of überwiegen vs überwiegende
Shared letters: beginrwü. Private to "überwiegen": -. Private to "überwiegende": d.
"überwiegen" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVVCVC · "überwiegende" · 12 letters · shape VCVCCVVCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "überwiegen" and "überwiegende" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "überwiegen" or "überwiegende"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "überwiegen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "überwiegende" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,735,100 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "überwiegen" and "überwiegende" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "überfliegen vs überwiegen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,735,100 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.