Which to use
“verderben” is a verb and “verdorben” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,652
- “verderben” frequency rank
- #20,767
- “verdorben” frequency rank
- 30419
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verderben | verdorben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas unbrauchbar oder zunichte machen, speziell auch jemandem ein positives Gefühl nehmen | als Essen schlecht geworden, als Lebensmittel nicht mehr zum Verzehr geeignet |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verderben and verdorben apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verderben is [fɛɐ̯ˈdɛʁbn̩] while verdorben is [fɛɐ̯ˈdɔʁbn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - e in “verderben” becomes o in “verdorben”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30419, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verderben is recorded at frequency rank #9,652, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdɛʁbn̩]. verdorben is at rank #20,767, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdɔʁbn̩].
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 30419, this pair ranks #1,748,196 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of verderben vs verdorben
Shared letters: bdenrv. Private to "verderben": -. Private to "verdorben": o.
"verderben" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verdorben" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verderben" and "verdorben" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verderben" or "verdorben"?
Remembering verderben vs verdorben
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “verderben”; for an adjective, it's “verdorben”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verderben” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable