Which to use
“verfangen” and “verjagen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,277
- “verfangen” frequency rank
- #45,017
- “verjagen” frequency rank
- 85294
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verfangen | verjagen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | den gewünschten oder beabsichtigten Erfolg haben; wirken | jemanden gewaltsam vertreiben, verscheuchen |
Where the eye mixes verfangen and verjagen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. verfangen runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against verjagen's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses verfangen with verjagen
A purely visual mix-up. verfangen ([fɛɐ̯ˈfaŋən]) and verjagen ([fɛɐ̯ˈjaːɡn̩]) 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 85294, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verfangen is recorded at frequency rank #40,277, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfaŋən]. verjagen is at rank #45,017, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈjaːɡn̩].
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 85294, this pair ranks #110,417 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of verfangen vs verjagen
Shared letters: aegnrv. Private to "verfangen": f. Private to "verjagen": j.
"verfangen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verjagen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verfangen" and "verjagen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verfangen" or "verjagen"?
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 "verfangen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verjagen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #110,417 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verfangen" and "verjagen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Vergaben vs verjagen". 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 #110,417 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.