Which to use
“bedürfen” is a verb and “berufen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,571
- “bedürfen” frequency rank
- #3,563
- “berufen” frequency rank
- 19134
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bedürfen | berufen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas benötigen, etwas brauchen, auf etwas angewiesen sein | besonders/mehr als andere fähig/geeignet für Aufgabe oder Amt |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bedürfen and berufen apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bedürfen is [bəˈdʏʁfn̩] while berufen is [bəˈʁuːfn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19134, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bedürfen is recorded at frequency rank #15,571, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈdʏʁfn̩]. berufen is at rank #3,563, tagged as anadj, pronounced [bəˈʁuːfn̩].
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 19134, this pair ranks #1,911,509 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of bedürfen vs berufen
Shared letters: befnr. Private to "bedürfen": dü. Private to "berufen": u.
"bedürfen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "berufen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- berufen ← bberufen · berfuen · berrufen · beruefn · berufenn · beruffen · berufne · beurfen
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bedürfen" and "berufen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "bedürfen" or "berufen"?
Remembering bedürfen vs berufen
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “bedürfen”; for an adjective, it's “berufen”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bedürfen” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable