VerhinderungvsVerwunderungWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#15,777
“Verhinderung” frequency rank
#26,674
“Verwunderung” frequency rank
42451
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Verhinderung Verwunderung
Definition Zustand des Bewirkens oder Erleidens, dass etwas nicht möglich ist das Verwundertsein

Where the eye mixes Verhinderung and Verwunderung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. Verhinderung and Verwunderung follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCCVCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

12 ch
Verhinderung
12 ch
Verwunderung

Why the eye confuses Verhinderung with Verwunderung

A purely visual mix-up. Verhinderung ([fɛɐ̯ˈhɪndəʁʊŋ]) and Verwunderung ([fɛɐ̯ˈvʊndəʁʊŋ]) 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 42451, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Verhinderung is recorded at frequency rank #15,777, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhɪndəʁʊŋ]. Verwunderung is at rank #26,674, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈvʊndəʁʊŋ].

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 42451, this pair ranks #1,448,882 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Verhinderung vs Verwunderung

Shared letters: degnruv. Private to "Verhinderung": hi. Private to "Verwunderung": w.

"Verhinderung" · 12 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCVCC  ·  "Verwunderung" · 12 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Verhinderung ← evrhinderung · vehrinderung · verhhinderung · verhidnerung · verhindderung · verhindernug · verhinderrung · verhinderugn
  • Verwunderung ← evrwunderung · verrwunderung · veruwnderung · verwnuderung · verwudnerung · verwundderung · verwundernug · verwunderrung

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Verhinderung" and "Verwunderung" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈhɪndəʁʊŋ] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈvʊndəʁʊŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Verhinderung" vs "Verwunderung" - which ranks higher?
"Verhinderung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,777 in our German list, against #26,674 for "Verwunderung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Verhinderung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Verwunderung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,448,882 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Verhinderung" and "Verwunderung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Verwunderung vs Verwundung". 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 #1,448,882 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