Which to use
“verdorben” is an adjective and “verhören” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,767
- “verdorben” frequency rank
- #42,913
- “verhören” frequency rank
- 63680
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verdorben | verhören |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | als Essen schlecht geworden, als Lebensmittel nicht mehr zum Verzehr geeignet | jemanden einem Verhör unterziehen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verdorben and verhören apart are highlighted. They share 6 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: verdorben is [fɛɐ̯ˈdɔʁbn̩] while verhören is [fɛɐ̯ˈhøːʁən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63680, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verdorben is recorded at frequency rank #20,767, classified as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdɔʁbn̩]. verhören is at rank #42,913, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhøːʁən].
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 63680, this pair ranks #668,180 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verdorben vs verhören
Shared letters: enrv. Private to "verdorben": bdo. Private to "verhören": hö.
"verdorben" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verhören" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- verdorben ← evrdorben · vedrorben · verddorben · verdobren · verdorbben · verdorbenn · verdorbne · verdorebn
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verdorben" and "verhören" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verdorben" or "verhören"?
Remembering verdorben vs verhören
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “verdorben”; for a verb, it's “verhören”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verdorben” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable