VerbotvsverpöntWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Verbot is a noun, verpönt is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Verbot” is a noun and “verpönt” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,794
“Verbot” frequency rank
#36,095
“verpönt” frequency rank
38889
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Verbot verpönt
Definition strenge Aufforderung, eine Handlung oder Tätigkeit zu unterlassen von der Gesellschaft, von anderen Menschen für schlecht gehalten, unerwünscht

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Verbot and verpönt apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
Verbot
7 ch
verpönt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Verbot is [fɛɐ̯ˈboːt] while verpönt is [ˌfɛɐ̯ˈpøːnt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38889, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Verbot is recorded at frequency rank #2,794, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈboːt]. verpönt is at rank #36,095, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˌfɛɐ̯ˈpøːnt].

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 38889, this pair ranks #1,551,947 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Verbot vs verpönt

Shared letters: ertv. Private to "Verbot": bo. Private to "verpönt": npö.

"Verbot" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "verpönt" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Verbotevrbot · vebrot · verbbot · verbott · verbto · verobt · verrbot · vrebot

Frequency comparison

Verbot#2,794
verpönt#36,095

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Verbot" and "verpönt" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Verbot" is a noun and "verpönt" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Verbot" or "verpönt"?
"Verbot" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,794 in our German list, against #36,095 for "verpönt". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Verbot vs verpönt

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Verbot”; for an adjective, it's “verpönt”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Verbot” 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