Which to use
“verfehlen” and “versehen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,213
- “verfehlen” frequency rank
- #2,566
- “versehen” frequency rank
- 28779
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verfehlen | versehen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein Ziel nicht treffen, nicht erreichen | jemanden oder etwas mit etwas ausstatten |
Where the eye mixes verfehlen and versehen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. verfehlen runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against versehen's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between verfehlen and versehen
A purely visual mix-up. verfehlen ([fɛɐ̯ˈfeːlən]) and versehen ([fɛɐ̯ˈzeːən]) 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 28779, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verfehlen is recorded at frequency rank #26,213, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfeːlən]. versehen is at rank #2,566, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈzeːən].
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 28779, this pair ranks #1,778,760 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of verfehlen vs versehen
Shared letters: ehnrv. Private to "verfehlen": fl. Private to "versehen": s.
"verfehlen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "versehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "verfehlen" and "versehen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "verfehlen" or "versehen"?
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 "verfehlen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "versehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,778,760 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verfehlen" and "versehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verfehlen vs verfehlten". 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 #1,778,760 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.