Which to use
“verbauen” and “verraten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,856
- “verbauen” frequency rank
- #3,928
- “verraten” frequency rank
- 41784
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verbauen | verraten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Material/Geld für einen Bau verbrauchen | jemandem ein Geheimnis oder eine vertrauliche Nachricht preisgeben |
Where the eye mixes verbauen and verraten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. verbauen (CVCCVVVC) and verraten (CVCCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses verbauen with verraten
A purely visual mix-up. verbauen ([fɛɐ̯ˈbaʊ̯ən]) and verraten ([fɛɐ̯ˈʁaːtn̩]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41784, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verbauen is recorded at frequency rank #37,856, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈbaʊ̯ən]. verraten is at rank #3,928, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʁaːtn̩].
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 41784, this pair ranks #1,469,172 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verbauen vs verraten
Shared letters: aenrv. Private to "verbauen": bu. Private to "verraten": t.
"verbauen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVVC · "verraten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "verbauen" for "verraten" ever safe?
Frequency check: "verbauen" vs "verraten" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "verbauen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verraten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,469,172 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verbauen" and "verraten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verbauen vs Vergaben". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,469,172 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.