verdrängenvsVerdrängungTell them apart

Quick tell: verdrängen is a verb, Verdrängung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“verdrängen” is a verb and “Verdrängung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#13,721
“verdrängen” frequency rank
#21,462
“Verdrängung” frequency rank
35183
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verdrängen Verdrängung
Definition jemanden oder etwas von seiner Stelle drängen oder schieben; den Platz von etwas einnehmen Vertreibung von Personen

Where the eye mixes verdrängen and Verdrängung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. verdrängen runs 10 letters (CVCCCVCCVC) against Verdrängung's 11 (CVCCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

10 ch
verdrängen
11 ch
Verdrängung

Why the eye confuses verdrängen with Verdrängung

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verdrängen is [fɛɐ̯ˈdʁɛŋən] while Verdrängung is [fɛɐ̯ˈdʁɛŋʊŋ]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35183, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verdrängen is recorded at frequency rank #13,721, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdʁɛŋən]. Verdrängung is at rank #21,462, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈdʁɛŋʊŋ].

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 35183, this pair ranks #1,646,028 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verdrängen vs Verdrängung

Shared letters: degnrvä. Private to "verdrängen": -. Private to "Verdrängung": u.

"verdrängen" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVC  ·  "Verdrängung" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verdrängen" and "Verdrängung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "verdrängen" is a verb and "Verdrängung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "verdrängen" vs "Verdrängung" - which ranks higher?
"verdrängen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,721 in our German list, against #21,462 for "Verdrängung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "verdrängen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Verdrängung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,646,028 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verdrängen" and "Verdrängung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Verdrängung vs Verhängung". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,646,028 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