befehlen

/[bəˈfeːlən]/ verb

Letters

8 characters

Frequency Rank

#17,525

in German word usage

Misspellings

12

tracked variants

Confusables

13

similar word pairs

befehlen is aGermanverb. It means: einen bindenden Auftrag erteilen, etwas Bestimmtes genau befolgend auszuführen Pronounced [bəˈfeːlən]. Often confused with begehen and bezahlen.

Key facts for befehlen
PropertyValue
Headwordbefehlen
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[bəˈfeːlən]
Letters8
Frequency rank#17,525
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of befehlen in German word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for befehlen is 8 letters long, classified as averb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [bəˈfeːlən]. Corpus data places it at rank #17,525 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 12 documented wrong-spelling variants for befehlen, with forms such as "bbefehlen", "beefhlen", and "befeheln". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "begehen", "bezahlen", "benehmen", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct German form is befehlen, spelled B-E-F-E-H-L-E-N, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    einen bindenden Auftrag erteilen, etwas Bestimmtes genau befolgend auszuführen
  2. 2
    belieben, wünschen
  3. 3
    durch (militärischen) Order an einem bestimmten Ort kommen lassen
  4. 4
    die Befugnis besitzen, Befehle zu erteilen
  5. 5
    vertrauensvoll übergeben, überlassen; sich voller Vertrauen offenbaren

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbefehlen,beefhlen,befeheln,befehhlen,befehlenn,befehllen,befehlne,befelhen,beffehlen,befhelen,bfeehlen,ebfehlen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for befehlen

Misspelling Variants of "befehlen"

bbefehlen9beefhlen8befeheln8befehhlen9befehlenn9befehllen9befehlne8befelhen8
Misspelling Variants of "befehlen"

Frequency rank: #17,525 in German

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "befehlen"?
"befehlen" is spelled B-E-F-E-H-L-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [bəˈfeːlən].
What does "befehlen" mean?
As a verb, "befehlen" means: einen bindenden Auftrag erteilen, etwas Bestimmtes genau befolgend auszuführen
What words are commonly confused with "befehlen"?
"befehlen" is commonly confused with "begehen", "bezahlen", "benehmen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "befehlen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "befehlen" is [bəˈfeːlən]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "befehlen" come from?
"befehlen" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby German words

Other entries that begin with the letter B in our German index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.