webenvswiegenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#38,516
“weben” frequency rank
#12,205
“wiegen” frequency rank
50721
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature weben wiegen
Definition durch wechselweises Kreuzen von Längsfäden und Querfäden ein Tuch oder Stoff herstellen das Gewicht von jemandem oder etwas messen, schätzen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set weben and wiegen apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
weben
6 ch
wiegen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. weben ([ˈveːbn̩]) and wiegen ([ˈviːɡn̩]) 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 50721, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

weben is recorded at frequency rank #38,516, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈveːbn̩]. wiegen is at rank #12,205, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈviːɡn̩].

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 50721, this pair ranks #1,163,021 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of weben vs wiegen

Shared letters: enw. Private to "weben": b. Private to "wiegen": gi.

"weben" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "wiegen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • webenewben · wbeen · webben · webenn · webne · weebn · wweben
  • wiegeniwegen · wieegn · wiegenn · wieggen · wiegne · wigeen · wwiegen

Frequency comparison

weben#38,516
wiegen#12,205

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "weben" and "wiegen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈveːbn̩] versus [ˈviːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "weben" or "wiegen"?
"wiegen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,205 in our German list, against #38,516 for "weben". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering weben vs wiegen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “weben” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list