verjagenvsversagenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#45,017
“verjagen” frequency rank
#6,119
“versagen” frequency rank
51136
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verjagen versagen
Definition jemanden gewaltsam vertreiben, verscheuchen nicht so funktionieren, wie es geplant war oder üblich ist

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verjagen and versagen apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
verjagen
8 ch
versagen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verjagen ([fɛɐ̯ˈjaːɡn̩]) and versagen ([fɛɐ̯ˈzaːɡn̩]) 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 a single letter - j in “verjagen” becomes s in “versagen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51136, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verjagen is recorded at frequency rank #45,017, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈjaːɡn̩]. versagen is at rank #6,119, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈzaːɡn̩].

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 51136, this pair ranks #1,147,083 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verjagen vs versagen

Shared letters: aegnrv. Private to "verjagen": j. Private to "versagen": s.

"verjagen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "versagen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verjagenevrjagen · vejragen · verajgen · verjaegn · verjagenn · verjaggen · verjagne · verjgaen
  • versagenevrsagen · verasgen · verrsagen · versaegn · versagenn · versaggen · versagne · versgaen

Frequency comparison

verjagen#45,017
versagen#6,119

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verjagen" and "versagen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈjaːɡn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈzaːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verjagen" or "versagen"?
"versagen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,119 in our German list, against #45,017 for "verjagen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verjagen vs versagen

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 “verjagen” 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