Which to use
“verdammen” and “verdampfen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,964
- “verdammen” frequency rank
- #47,079
- “verdampfen” frequency rank
- 82043
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verdammen | verdampfen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aus der (kirchlichen) Gemeinschaft ausschließen | in die Gasphase übertreten |
Where the eye mixes verdammen and verdampfen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. verdammen runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against verdampfen's 10 (CVCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses verdammen with verdampfen
A purely visual mix-up. verdammen ([fɛɐ̯ˈdamən]) and verdampfen ([fɛɐ̯ˈdamp͡fn̩]) 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 82043, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verdammen is recorded at frequency rank #34,964, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdamən]. verdampfen is at rank #47,079, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdamp͡fn̩].
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 82043, this pair ranks #164,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of verdammen vs verdampfen
Shared letters: ademnrv. Private to "verdammen": -. Private to "verdampfen": fp.
"verdammen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verdampfen" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- verdammen ← evrdammen · vedrammen · veradmmen · verdamemn · verdamen · verdammenn · verdammne · verddammen
- verdampfen ← evrdampfen · vedrampfen · veradmpfen · verdamfpen · verdammpfen · verdampefn · verdampfenn · verdampffen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "verdammen" for "verdampfen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "verdammen" or "verdampfen"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "verdammen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verdampfen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #164,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verdammen" and "verdampfen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verdampfen vs verdampft". 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 #164,386 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.