Which to use
“verbieten” and “verhielten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,229
- “verbieten” frequency rank
- #48,592
- “verhielten” frequency rank
- 53821
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verbieten | verhielten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Unterlassung fordern | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs verhalten |
Where the eye mixes verbieten and verhielten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. verbieten runs 9 letters (CVCCVVCVC) against verhielten's 10 (CVCCVVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses verbieten with verhielten
A purely visual mix-up. verbieten ([fɛɐ̯ˈbiːtn̩]) and verhielten ([fɛɐ̯ˈhiːltn̩]) 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 53821, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verbieten is recorded at frequency rank #5,229, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈbiːtn̩]. verhielten is at rank #48,592, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhiːltn̩].
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 53821, this pair ranks #1,042,939 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verbieten vs verhielten
Shared letters: einrtv. Private to "verbieten": b. Private to "verhielten": hl.
"verbieten" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC · "verhielten" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- verbieten ← evrbieten · vebrieten · verbbieten · verbeiten · verbieetn · verbietenn · verbietne · verbietten
- verhielten ← evrhielten · vehrielten · verheilten · verhhielten · verhieletn · verhiellten · verhieltenn · verhieltne
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verbieten" and "verhielten" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verbieten" or "verhielten"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "verbieten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verhielten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,042,939 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verbieten" and "verhielten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verhielten vs verzierten". 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 #1,042,939 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.