verhütenvsverratenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#40,923
“verhüten” frequency rank
#3,928
“verraten” frequency rank
44851
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verhüten verraten
Definition den Eintritt eines unerwünschten Ereignisses verhindern jemandem ein Geheimnis oder eine vertrauliche Nachricht preisgeben

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch
verhüten
8 ch
verraten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verhüten ([fɛɐ̯ˈhyːtn̩]) and verraten ([fɛɐ̯ˈʁaːtn̩]) 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 44851, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verhüten is recorded at frequency rank #40,923, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈhyːtn̩]. verraten is at rank #3,928, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʁaːtn̩].

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 44851, this pair ranks #1,372,648 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verhüten vs verraten

Shared letters: enrtv. Private to "verhüten": . Private to "verraten": a.

"verhüten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "verraten" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verratenevrraten · verarten · veraten · verraetn · verratenn · verratne · verratten · verrtaen

Frequency comparison

verhüten#40,923
verraten#3,928

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verhüten" and "verraten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈhyːtn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈʁaːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verhüten" or "verraten"?
"verraten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,928 in our German list, against #40,923 for "verhüten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering verhüten vs verraten

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 “verhüten” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list