verhörenvsversorgenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#42,913
“verhören” frequency rank
#6,252
“versorgen” frequency rank
49165
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verhören versorgen
Definition jemanden einem Verhör unterziehen jemandem oder einer Sache Nötiges zuführen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verhören and versorgen apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
verhören
9 ch
versorgen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verhören ([fɛɐ̯ˈhøːʁən]) and versorgen ([fɛɐ̯ˈzɔʁɡn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49165, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verhören is recorded at frequency rank #42,913, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhøːʁən]. versorgen is at rank #6,252, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈzɔʁɡn̩].

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 49165, this pair ranks #1,221,713 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verhören vs versorgen

Shared letters: enrv. Private to "verhören": . Private to "versorgen": gos.

"verhören" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "versorgen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • versorgenevrsorgen · verosrgen · verrsorgen · versogren · versoregn · versorgenn · versorggen · versorgne

Frequency comparison

verhören#42,913
versorgen#6,252

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verhören" and "versorgen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈhøːʁən] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈzɔʁɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verhören" or "versorgen"?
"versorgen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,252 in our German list, against #42,913 for "verhören". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verhören vs versorgen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verhören” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list