verbotenvsverlogenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,132
“verboten” frequency rank
#34,438
“verlogen” frequency rank
36570
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verboten verlogen
Definition nicht erlaubt Unwahres vortäuschend, unecht

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verboten and verlogen apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
verboten
8 ch
verlogen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verboten ([fɛɐ̯ˈboːtn̩]) and verlogen ([fɛɐ̯ˈloːɡn̩]) 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 36570, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verboten is recorded at frequency rank #2,132, classified as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈboːtn̩]. verlogen is at rank #34,438, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈloːɡn̩].

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 36570, this pair ranks #1,612,213 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verboten vs verlogen

Shared letters: enorv. Private to "verboten": bt. Private to "verlogen": gl.

"verboten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "verlogen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verbotenevrboten · vebroten · verbboten · verboetn · verbotenn · verbotne · verbotten · verbtoen
  • verlogenevrlogen · velrogen · verlgoen · verllogen · verloegn · verlogenn · verloggen · verlogne

Frequency comparison

verboten#2,132
verlogen#34,438

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verboten" and "verlogen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈboːtn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈloːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verboten" or "verlogen"?
"verboten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,132 in our German list, against #34,438 for "verlogen". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering verboten vs verlogen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verboten” 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