verdirbtvsverfärbtConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#31,336
“verdirbt” frequency rank
#40,280
“verfärbt” frequency rank
71616
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verdirbt verfärbt
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs verderben 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs verfärben

Where the eye mixes verdirbt and verfärbt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. verdirbt and verfärbt follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
verdirbt
8 ch
verfärbt

Why the eye confuses verdirbt with verfärbt

A purely visual mix-up. verdirbt ([fɛɐ̯ˈdɪʁpt]) and verfärbt ([fɛɐ̯ˈfɛʁpt]) 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 71616, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verdirbt is recorded at frequency rank #31,336, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdɪʁpt]. verfärbt is at rank #40,280, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfɛʁpt].

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 71616, this pair ranks #411,720 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of verdirbt vs verfärbt

Shared letters: bertv. Private to "verdirbt": di. Private to "verfärbt": fä.

"verdirbt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCC  ·  "verfärbt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verdirbt ← evrdirbt · vedrirbt · verddirbt · verdibrt · verdirbbt · verdirbtt · verdirrbt · verdirtb

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verdirbt" and "verfärbt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈdɪʁpt] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈfɛʁpt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verdirbt" or "verfärbt"?
"verdirbt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #31,336 in our German list, against #40,280 for "verfärbt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "verdirbt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "verfärbt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #411,720 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verdirbt" and "verfärbt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verfärbt vs verwarnt". 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 #411,720 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list