verbannenvsverhängenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#23,758
“verbannen” frequency rank
#27,545
“verhängen” frequency rank
51303
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verbannen verhängen
Definition jemanden mit einem Bann belegen, jemand eines Gebiets verweisen etwas mit einem Tuch oder dergleichen zuhängen, verbergen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verbannen and verhängen apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
verbannen
9 ch
verhängen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verbannen ([fɛɐ̯ˈbanən]) and verhängen ([fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51303, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verbannen is recorded at frequency rank #23,758, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈbanən]. verhängen is at rank #27,545, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋən].

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 51303, this pair ranks #1,140,628 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verbannen vs verhängen

Shared letters: enrv. Private to "verbannen": ab. Private to "verhängen": ghä.

"verbannen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "verhängen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verbannenevrbannen · vebrannen · verabnnen · verbanen · verbanenn · verbannenn · verbannne · verbbannen

Frequency comparison

verbannen#23,758
verhängen#27,545

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verbannen" and "verhängen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈbanən] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verbannen" or "verhängen"?
"verbannen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,758 in our German list, against #27,545 for "verhängen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verbannen vs verhängen

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 “verbannen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list