Which to use
“unterlag” and “untersagt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,761
- “unterlag” frequency rank
- #8,804
- “untersagt” frequency rank
- 19565
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | unterlag | untersagt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs unterliegen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs untersagen |
Where the eye mixes unterlag and untersagt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. unterlag runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against untersagt's 9 (VCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between unterlag and untersagt
A purely visual mix-up. unterlag ([ˌʊntɐˈlaːk]) and untersagt ([ˌʊntɐˈzaːkt]) 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 19565, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
unterlag is recorded at frequency rank #10,761, classified as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈlaːk]. untersagt is at rank #8,804, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˌʊntɐˈzaːkt].
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 19565, this pair ranks #1,907,015 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of unterlag vs untersagt
Shared letters: aegnrtu. Private to "unterlag": l. Private to "untersagt": s.
"unterlag" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "untersagt" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "unterlag" for "untersagt" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "unterlag" or "untersagt" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "unterlag" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "untersagt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,907,015 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "unterlag" and "untersagt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "unterlag vs unterzog". 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 #1,907,015 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.