verbotenvsverübtenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,132
“verboten” frequency rank
#39,115
“verübten” frequency rank
41247
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verboten verübten
Definition nicht erlaubt Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs verübt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verboten and verübten apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
verboten
8 ch
verübten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verboten ([fɛɐ̯ˈboːtn̩]) and verübten ([fɛɐ̯ˈʔyːptn̩]) 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 41247, 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]. verübten is at rank #39,115, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʔyːptn̩].

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 41247, this pair ranks #1,485,083 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verboten vs verübten

Shared letters: benrtv. Private to "verboten": o. Private to "verübten": ü.

"verboten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "verübten" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verbotenevrboten · vebroten · verbboten · verboetn · verbotenn · verbotne · verbotten · verbtoen

Frequency comparison

verboten#2,132
verübten#39,115

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verboten" and "verübten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈboːtn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈʔyːptn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verboten" or "verübten"?
"verboten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,132 in our German list, against #39,115 for "verübten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering verboten vs verübten

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