Which to use
“verfolgen” is a verb and “Verfolger” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,795
- “verfolgen” frequency rank
- #20,107
- “Verfolger” frequency rank
- 22902
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verfolgen | Verfolger |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem hinterher fahren oder gehen, eventuell um ihn einzuholen; jemandem auf den Fersen sein | jemand, der jemanden oder etwas verfolgt |
Where the eye mixes verfolgen and Verfolger
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. verfolgen and Verfolger follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: verfolgen vs Verfolger
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verfolgen is [fɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡn̩] while Verfolger is [fɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - n in “verfolgen” becomes r in “Verfolger”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22902, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verfolgen is recorded at frequency rank #2,795, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡn̩]. Verfolger is at rank #20,107, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡɐ].
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 22902, this pair ranks #1,868,249 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of verfolgen vs Verfolger
Shared letters: efglorv. Private to "verfolgen": n. Private to "Verfolger": -.
"verfolgen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "Verfolger" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "verfolgen" for "Verfolger" ever safe?
Which is more common, "verfolgen" or "Verfolger"?
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 "verfolgen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Verfolger" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,868,249 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verfolgen" and "Verfolger" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verbogen vs verfolgen". 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 #1,868,249 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.