verkaufenvsverlautenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,246
“verkaufen” frequency rank
#36,704
“verlauten” frequency rank
37950
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verkaufen verlauten
Definition einen Gegenstand, eine Ware gegen Geld abgeben zur allgemeinen Kenntnisnahme bringen

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
verkaufen
9 ch
verlauten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verkaufen ([fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fn̩]) and verlauten ([fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯tn̩]) 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 37950, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verkaufen is recorded at frequency rank #1,246, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fn̩]. verlauten is at rank #36,704, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯tn̩].

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 37950, this pair ranks #1,576,828 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verkaufen vs verlauten

Shared letters: aenruv. Private to "verkaufen": fk. Private to "verlauten": lt.

"verkaufen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC  ·  "verlauten" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verkaufenevrkaufen · vekraufen · verakufen · verkafuen · verkauefn · verkaufenn · verkauffen · verkaufne
  • verlautenevrlauten · velrauten · veraluten · verlatuen · verlauetn · verlautenn · verlautne · verlautten

Frequency comparison

verkaufen#1,246
verlauten#36,704

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verkaufen" and "verlauten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯fn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯tn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verkaufen" or "verlauten"?
"verkaufen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,246 in our German list, against #36,704 for "verlauten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering verkaufen vs verlauten

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 “verkaufen” 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