vergehenvsvorsehenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#6,606
“vergehen” frequency rank
#29,855
“vorsehen” frequency rank
36461
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vergehen vorsehen
Definition (rasch) zu Ende kommen hinter oder unter etwas hervorschauen

Where the eye mixes vergehen and vorsehen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

8 ch
vergehen
8 ch
vorsehen

Visual trap between vergehen and vorsehen

A purely visual mix-up. vergehen ([fɛɐ̯ˈɡeːən]) and vorsehen ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌzeːən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36461, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vergehen is recorded at frequency rank #6,606, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈɡeːən]. vorsehen is at rank #29,855, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌzeːən].

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 36461, this pair ranks #1,615,044 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vergehen vs vorsehen

Shared letters: ehnrv. Private to "vergehen": g. Private to "vorsehen": os.

"vergehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "vorsehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vergehenevrgehen · vegrehen · vereghen · vergeehn · vergehenn · vergehhen · vergehne · verggehen
  • vorsehenovrsehen · voreshen · vorrsehen · vorseehn · vorsehenn · vorsehhen · vorsehne · vorsheen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vergehen" and "vorsehen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈɡeːən] versus [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌzeːən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "vergehen" vs "vorsehen" - which ranks higher?
"vergehen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,606 in our German list, against #29,855 for "vorsehen". 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 "vergehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "vorsehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,615,044 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vergehen" and "vorsehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Vorgehens vs vorsehen". 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 #1,615,044 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