Which to use
“nerve” is a verb and “nervige” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #48,351
- “nerve” frequency rank
- #24,053
- “nervige” frequency rank
- 72404
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nerve | nervige |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs nerven | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs nervig |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set nerve and nervige apart are highlighted. They share 5 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: nerve is [ˈnɛʁfə] while nervige is [ˈnɛʁfɪɡə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 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 72404, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nerve is recorded at frequency rank #48,351, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnɛʁfə]. nervige is at rank #24,053, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈnɛʁfɪɡə].
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 72404, this pair ranks #389,293 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of nerve vs nervige
Shared letters: enrv. Private to "nerve": -. Private to "nervige": gi.
"nerve" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "nervige" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "nerve" and "nervige" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "nerve" or "nervige"?
Remembering nerve vs nervige
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “nerve”; for an adjective, it's “nervige”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “nerve” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable