Which to use
“Verhältnis” and “Verhängnis” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,866
- “Verhältnis” frequency rank
- #23,762
- “Verhängnis” frequency rank
- 25628
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Verhältnis | Verhängnis |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Beziehung, bei der zwei Dinge oder zwei Sachverhalte miteinander verglichen werden | ein Ereignis oder ein Zusammenwirken verschiedener Ereignisse, wodurch eine ungünstige Wendung des Schicksals herbeigeführt wird |
Where the eye mixes Verhältnis and Verhängnis
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Verhältnis and Verhängnis follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: Verhältnis vs Verhängnis
A purely visual mix-up. Verhältnis ([fɛɐ̯ˈhɛltnɪs]) and Verhängnis ([fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋnɪs]) 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 25628, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Verhältnis is recorded at frequency rank #1,866, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛltnɪs]. Verhängnis is at rank #23,762, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋnɪs].
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 25628, this pair ranks #1,830,395 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Verhältnis vs Verhängnis
Shared letters: ehinrsvä. Private to "Verhältnis": lt. Private to "Verhängnis": g.
"Verhältnis" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCCVC · "Verhängnis" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Verhältnis" and "Verhängnis" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Verhältnis" or "Verhängnis" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Verhältnis" and "Verhängnis" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Verhältnis" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Verhängnis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,830,395 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Verhältnis" and "Verhängnis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Verhaltens vs Verhältnis". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,830,395 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.