vererbtvsverlerntWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#22,946
“vererbt” frequency rank
#29,843
“verlernt” frequency rank
52789
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vererbt verlernt
Definition 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs vererben 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs verlernen

Where the eye mixes vererbt and verlernt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. vererbt runs 7 letters (CVCVCCC) against verlernt's 8 (CVCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
vererbt
8 ch
verlernt

Visual trap between vererbt and verlernt

A purely visual mix-up. vererbt ([fɛɐ̯ˈʔɛʁpt]) and verlernt ([fɛɐ̯ˈlɛʁnt]) 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 52789, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vererbt is recorded at frequency rank #22,946, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʔɛʁpt]. verlernt is at rank #29,843, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈlɛʁnt].

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 52789, this pair ranks #1,083,183 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vererbt vs verlernt

Shared letters: ertv. Private to "vererbt": b. Private to "verlernt": ln.

"vererbt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC  ·  "verlernt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vererbtevrerbt · veerrbt · verebrt · vererbbt · vererbtt · vererrbt · verertb · verrebt
  • verlerntevrlernt · velrernt · verelrnt · verlenrt · verlernnt · verlerntt · verlerrnt · verlertn

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "vererbt" for "verlernt" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈʔɛʁpt] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈlɛʁnt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "vererbt" vs "verlernt" - which ranks higher?
"vererbt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,946 in our German list, against #29,843 for "verlernt". 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 "vererbt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "verlernt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,083,183 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vererbt" and "verlernt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verkennt vs verlernt". 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 #1,083,183 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