verfügenvsverübenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#4,839
“verfügen” frequency rank
#32,844
“verüben” frequency rank
37683
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verfügen verüben
Definition als Person/Stelle mit Befugnis/Befehlsgewalt anordnen, dass etwas Genanntes geschehen soll etwas Negatives, Schädliches ausführen

Where the eye mixes verfügen and verüben

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. verfügen runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVC) against verüben's 7 (CVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
verfügen
7 ch
verüben

Look-alike desk: verfügen vs verüben

A purely visual mix-up. verfügen ([fɛɐ̯ˈfyːɡn̩]) and verüben ([fɛɐ̯ˈʔyːbn̩]) 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 37683, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verfügen is recorded at frequency rank #4,839, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈfyːɡn̩]. verüben is at rank #32,844, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʔyːbn̩].

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 37683, this pair ranks #1,583,794 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verfügen vs verüben

Shared letters: enrvü. Private to "verfügen": fg. Private to "verüben": b.

"verfügen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "verüben" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "verfügen" for "verüben" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈfyːɡn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈʔyːbn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verfügen" or "verüben"?
"verfügen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,839 in our German list, against #32,844 for "verüben". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "verfügen" and "verüben" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "verfügen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "verüben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,583,794 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verfügen" and "verüben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Vergaben vs verüben". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,583,794 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