vergewaltigenvsVergewaltigungConfusable pair

Quick tell: vergewaltigen is a verb, Vergewaltigung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“vergewaltigen” is a verb and “Vergewaltigung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,776
“vergewaltigen” frequency rank
#6,870
“Vergewaltigung” frequency rank
22646
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vergewaltigen Vergewaltigung
Definition jemanden unter Gebrauch oder Androhung von Gewalt gegen seinen Willen zum Geschlechtsverkehr zwingen Straftat, ein sexueller Übergriff, bei dem eine Person gegen ihren ausdrücklichen Willen gezwungen wird

Where the eye mixes vergewaltigen and Vergewaltigung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 12 letters in sequence. vergewaltigen runs 13 letters (CVCCVCVCCVCVC) against Vergewaltigung's 14 (CVCCVCVCCVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

13 ch
vergewaltigen
14 ch
Vergewaltigung

Look-alike desk: vergewaltigen vs Vergewaltigung

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vergewaltigen is [fɛɐ̯ɡəˈvaltɪɡn̩] while Vergewaltigung is [fɛɐ̯ɡəˈvaltɪɡʊŋ]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22646, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vergewaltigen is recorded at frequency rank #15,776, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ɡəˈvaltɪɡn̩]. Vergewaltigung is at rank #6,870, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ɡəˈvaltɪɡʊŋ].

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 22646, this pair ranks #1,871,547 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vergewaltigen vs Vergewaltigung

Shared letters: aegilnrtvw. Private to "vergewaltigen": -. Private to "Vergewaltigung": u.

"vergewaltigen" · 13 letters · shape CVCCVCVCCVCVC  ·  "Vergewaltigung" · 14 letters · shape CVCCVCVCCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vergewaltigen ← evrgewaltigen · vegrewaltigen · veregwaltigen · vergeawltigen · vergewalitgen · vergewalltigen · vergewaltgien · vergewaltiegn
  • Vergewaltigung ← evrgewaltigung · vegrewaltigung · veregwaltigung · vergeawltigung · vergewalitgung · vergewalltigung · vergewaltgiung · vergewaltiggung

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vergewaltigen" and "Vergewaltigung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "vergewaltigen" is a verb and "Vergewaltigung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "vergewaltigen" or "Vergewaltigung" show up more?
"Vergewaltigung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,870 in our German list, against #15,776 for "vergewaltigen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "vergewaltigen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Vergewaltigung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,871,547 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vergewaltigen" and "Vergewaltigung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vergewaltigen vs vergewaltigte". 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 #1,871,547 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