verbindenvsverhindernConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#3,857
“verbinden” frequency rank
#1,494
“verhindern” frequency rank
5351
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verbinden verhindern
Definition mit einer Binde abdecken, mit einem Verband versorgen bewirken, dass etwas nicht geschieht oder dass jemand etwas nicht tun kann

Where the eye mixes verbinden and verhindern

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

9 ch
verbinden
10 ch
verhindern

Look-alike desk: verbinden vs verhindern

A purely visual mix-up. verbinden ([fɛɐ̯ˈbɪndn̩]) and verhindern ([fɛɐ̯ˈhɪndɐn]) 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 5351, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verbinden is recorded at frequency rank #3,857, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈbɪndn̩]. verhindern is at rank #1,494, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɪndɐn].

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 5351, this pair ranks #1,995,028 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verbinden vs verhindern

Shared letters: deinrv. Private to "verbinden": b. Private to "verhindern": h.

"verbinden" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "verhindern" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verbinden ← evrbinden · vebrinden · verbbinden · verbidnen · verbindden · verbindenn · verbindne · verbinedn
  • verhindern ← evrhindern · vehrindern · verhhindern · verhidnern · verhinddern · verhindenr · verhindernn · verhinderrn

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verbinden" and "verhindern" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈbɪndn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈhɪndɐn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verbinden" or "verhindern"?
"verhindern" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,494 in our German list, against #3,857 for "verbinden". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "verbinden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "verhindern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,995,028 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verbinden" and "verhindern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verbinden vs verbindende". 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 #1,995,028 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