verfassenvsverpasseConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#12,615
“verfassen” frequency rank
#24,181
“verpasse” frequency rank
36796
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verfassen verpasse
Definition (einen Text) erstellen und schriftlich niederlegen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs verpassen

Where the eye mixes verfassen and verpasse

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. verfassen runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against verpasse's 8 (CVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
verfassen
8 ch
verpasse

Look-alike desk: verfassen vs verpasse

A purely visual mix-up. verfassen ([fɛɐ̯ˈfasn̩]) and verpasse ([fɛɐ̯ˈpasə]) 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 36796, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verfassen is recorded at frequency rank #12,615, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfasn̩]. verpasse is at rank #24,181, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈpasə].

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 36796, this pair ranks #1,606,506 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verfassen vs verpasse

Shared letters: aersv. Private to "verfassen": fn. Private to "verpasse": p.

"verfassen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "verpasse" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verfassen ← evrfassen · vefrassen · verafssen · verfasen · verfasesn · verfassenn · verfassne · verfaßen
  • verpasse ← evrpasse · veprasse · verapsse · verpase · verpases · verpaße · verppasse · verpsase

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "verfassen" for "verpasse" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈfasn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈpasə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "verfassen" vs "verpasse" - which ranks higher?
"verfassen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,615 in our German list, against #24,181 for "verpasse". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "verfassen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "verpasse" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,606,506 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verfassen" and "verpasse" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verpasse vs Vorkasse". 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 #1,606,506 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