VergabenvsvergangenTell them apart

Quick tell: Vergaben is a noun, vergangen is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Vergaben” is a noun and “vergangen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#47,085
“Vergaben” frequency rank
#8,001
“vergangen” frequency rank
55086
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Vergaben vergangen
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Vergabe nicht mehr aktuell; in der Vergangenheit liegend

Where the eye mixes Vergaben and vergangen

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

8 ch
Vergaben
9 ch
vergangen

Why the eye confuses Vergaben with vergangen

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Vergaben is [fɛɐ̯ˈɡaːbn̩] while vergangen is [fɛɐ̯ˈɡaŋən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55086, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Vergaben is recorded at frequency rank #47,085, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈɡaːbn̩]. vergangen is at rank #8,001, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈɡaŋən].

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 55086, this pair ranks #993,276 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Vergaben vs vergangen

Shared letters: aegnrv. Private to "Vergaben": b. Private to "vergangen": -.

"Vergaben" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "vergangen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Vergaben ← evrgaben · vegraben · veragben · vergabben · vergabenn · vergabne · vergaebn · vergbaen
  • vergangen ← evrgangen · vegrangen · veragngen · vergagnen · verganegn · vergangenn · verganggen · vergangne

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Vergaben" and "vergangen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Vergaben" is a noun and "vergangen" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "Vergaben" vs "vergangen" - which ranks higher?
"vergangen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,001 in our German list, against #47,085 for "Vergaben". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Vergaben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "vergangen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #993,276 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Vergaben" and "vergangen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Vergaben vs vergebe". 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 #993,276 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