Which to use
“vergangene” is an adjective and “vergingen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,194
- “vergangene” frequency rank
- #31,341
- “vergingen” frequency rank
- 41535
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vergangene | vergingen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs vergangen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs vergehen |
Where the eye mixes vergangene and vergingen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. vergangene runs 10 letters (CVCCVCCVCV) against vergingen's 9 (CVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses vergangene with vergingen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vergangene is [fɛɐ̯ˈɡaŋənə] while vergingen is [fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋən]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41535, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vergangene is recorded at frequency rank #10,194, classified as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈɡaŋənə]. vergingen is at rank #31,341, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋən].
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 41535, this pair ranks #1,476,518 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of vergangene vs vergingen
Shared letters: egnrv. Private to "vergangene": a. Private to "vergingen": i.
"vergangene" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCV · "vergingen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- vergangene ← evrgangene · vegrangene · veragngene · vergagnene · verganegne · vergangeen · verganggene · vergangnee
- vergingen ← evrgingen · vegringen · verggingen · vergignen · verginegn · vergingenn · verginggen · vergingne
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "vergangene" for "vergingen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "vergangene" or "vergingen" show up more?
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 "vergangene" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "vergingen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,476,518 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vergangene" and "vergingen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verfangen vs vergingen". 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 #1,476,518 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.