Which to use
“verfiel” and “verhielt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,841
- “verfiel” frequency rank
- #30,357
- “verhielt” frequency rank
- 60198
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verfiel | verhielt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs verfallen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs verhalten |
Where the eye mixes verfiel and verhielt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. verfiel runs 7 letters (CVCCVVC) against verhielt's 8 (CVCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between verfiel and verhielt
A purely visual mix-up. verfiel ([fɛɐ̯ˈfiːl]) and verhielt ([fɛɐ̯ˈhiːlt]) 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 60198, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verfiel is recorded at frequency rank #29,841, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfiːl]. verhielt is at rank #30,357, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhiːlt].
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 60198, this pair ranks #795,937 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verfiel vs verhielt
Shared letters: eilrv. Private to "verfiel": f. Private to "verhielt": ht.
"verfiel" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC · "verhielt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verfiel" and "verhielt" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verfiel" or "verhielt"?
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 "verfiel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verhielt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #795,937 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verfiel" and "verhielt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verfiel vs verzieh". 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 #795,937 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.