VerbeugungvsVerengungConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#38,485
“Verbeugung” frequency rank
#47,083
“Verengung” frequency rank
85568
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Verbeugung Verengung
Definition der Vorgang des Verbeugens der Vorgang des Sichverengens

Where the eye mixes Verbeugung and Verengung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Verbeugung runs 10 letters (CVCCVVCVCC) against Verengung's 9 (CVCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

10 ch
Verbeugung
9 ch
Verengung

Visual trap between Verbeugung and Verengung

A purely visual mix-up. Verbeugung ([fɛɐ̯ˈbɔɪ̯ɡʊŋ]) and Verengung ([fɛɐ̯ˈʔɛŋʊŋ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 85568, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Verbeugung is recorded at frequency rank #38,485, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈbɔɪ̯ɡʊŋ]. Verengung is at rank #47,083, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʔɛŋʊŋ].

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 85568, this pair ranks #106,367 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Verbeugung vs Verengung

Shared letters: egnruv. Private to "Verbeugung": b. Private to "Verengung": -.

"Verbeugung" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVVCVCC  ·  "Verengung" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Verbeugung ← evrbeugung · vebreugung · verbbeugung · verbeguung · verbeuggung · verbeugnug · verbeugugn · verbeugungg
  • Verengung ← evrengung · veerngung · veregnung · verenggung · verengnug · verengugn · verengungg · verengunng

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Verbeugung" and "Verengung" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈbɔɪ̯ɡʊŋ] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈʔɛŋʊŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Verbeugung" or "Verengung"?
"Verbeugung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #38,485 in our German list, against #47,083 for "Verengung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "Verbeugung" and "Verengung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Verbeugung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Verengung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #106,367 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Verbeugung" and "Verengung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Verengung vs Verhängung". 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 #106,367 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list