vergiftenvsvergingenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#24,560
“vergiften” frequency rank
#31,341
“vergingen” frequency rank
55901
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vergiften vergingen
Definition etwas mit Gift versehen 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs vergehen

Where the eye mixes vergiften and vergingen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

9 ch
vergiften
9 ch
vergingen

Visual trap between vergiften and vergingen

A purely visual mix-up. vergiften ([fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪftn̩]) and vergingen ([fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋən]) 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 55901, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vergiften is recorded at frequency rank #24,560, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪftn̩]. 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 55901, this pair ranks #961,268 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vergiften vs vergingen

Shared letters: eginrv. Private to "vergiften": ft. Private to "vergingen": -.

"vergiften" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "vergingen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vergiftenevrgiften · vegriften · vergfiten · verggiften · vergifetn · vergifften · vergiftenn · vergiftne
  • vergingenevrgingen · vegringen · verggingen · vergignen · verginegn · vergingenn · verginggen · vergingne

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vergiften" and "vergingen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪftn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "vergiften" vs "vergingen" - which ranks higher?
"vergiften" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,560 in our German list, against #31,341 for "vergingen". 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 "vergiften" 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 #961,268 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vergiften" and "vergingen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vergiften vs vergifteten". 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 #961,268 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