Which to use
“verkaufe” and “verkaufen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,481
- “verkaufe” frequency rank
- #1,246
- “verkaufen” frequency rank
- 7727
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verkaufe | verkaufen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs verkaufen | einen Gegenstand, eine Ware gegen Geld abgeben |
Where the eye mixes verkaufe and verkaufen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. verkaufe runs 8 letters (CVCCVVCV) against verkaufen's 9 (CVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: verkaufe vs verkaufen
A purely visual mix-up. verkaufe ([fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fə]) and verkaufen ([fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fn̩]) 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 extra letter(s) - “verkaufe” sits inside “verkaufen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7727, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verkaufe is recorded at frequency rank #6,481, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fə]. verkaufen is at rank #1,246, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fn̩].
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 7727, this pair ranks #1,987,121 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of verkaufe vs verkaufen
Shared letters: aefkruv. Private to "verkaufe": -. Private to "verkaufen": n.
"verkaufe" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCV · "verkaufen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "verkaufe" for "verkaufen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "verkaufe" vs "verkaufen" - which ranks higher?
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 "verkaufe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verkaufen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,987,121 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verkaufe" and "verkaufen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verkaufe vs Verkäufern". 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 #1,987,121 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.