verhängenvsVerhängungConfusable pair

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

Which to use

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

#27,545
“verhängen” frequency rank
#41,540
“Verhängung” frequency rank
69085
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verhängen Verhängung
Definition etwas mit einem Tuch oder dergleichen zuhängen, verbergen Anordnung einer Buße oder Strafe

Where the eye mixes verhängen and Verhängung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. verhängen runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against Verhängung's 10 (CVCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
verhängen
10 ch
Verhängung

Visual trap between verhängen and Verhängung

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verhängen is [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋən] while Verhängung is [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋʊŋ]. 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 69085, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verhängen is recorded at frequency rank #27,545, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋən]. Verhängung is at rank #41,540, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɛŋʊŋ].

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 69085, this pair ranks #487,505 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of verhängen vs Verhängung

Shared letters: eghnrvä. Private to "verhängen": -. Private to "Verhängung": u.

"verhängen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "Verhängung" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verhängen" and "Verhängung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "verhängen" is a verb and "Verhängung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "verhängen" or "Verhängung"?
"verhängen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,545 in our German list, against #41,540 for "Verhängung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "verhängen" and "Verhängung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "verhängen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Verhängung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #487,505 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verhängen" and "Verhängung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Verengung vs Verhängung". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #487,505 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