bergevsBürgenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: berge is a verb, Bürgen is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“berge” is a verb and “Bürgen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#3,562
“berge” frequency rank
#31,487
“Bürgen” frequency rank
35049
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature berge Bürgen
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bergen Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Bürge

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
berge
6 ch
Bürgen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: berge is [ˈbɛʁɡə] while Bürgen is [ˈbʏʁɡn̩]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35049, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

berge is recorded at frequency rank #3,562, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbɛʁɡə]. Bürgen is at rank #31,487, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbʏʁɡn̩].

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 35049, this pair ranks #1,649,261 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of berge vs Bürgen

Shared letters: begr. Private to "berge": -. Private to "Bürgen": .

"berge" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "Bürgen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bergebberge · begre · bereg · bergge · berrge · brege · ebrge

Frequency comparison

berge#3,562
Bürgen#31,487

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "berge" and "Bürgen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "berge" is a verb and "Bürgen" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "berge" or "Bürgen"?
"berge" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,562 in our German list, against #31,487 for "Bürgen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering berge vs Bürgen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “berge”; for a noun, it's “Bürgen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “berge” 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