verlaufevsverlaufenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#27,548
“verlaufe” frequency rank
#5,126
“verlaufen” frequency rank
32674
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verlaufe verlaufen
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs verlaufen irgendwohin gehen und sich dabei verirren

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verlaufe and verlaufen apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
verlaufe
9 ch
verlaufen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verlaufe ([fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯fə]) and verlaufen ([fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯fn̩]) 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) - “verlaufe” sits inside “verlaufen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32674, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verlaufe is recorded at frequency rank #27,548, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯fə]. verlaufen is at rank #5,126, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯fn̩].

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 32674, this pair ranks #1,702,502 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verlaufe vs verlaufen

Shared letters: aeflruv. Private to "verlaufe": -. Private to "verlaufen": n.

"verlaufe" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCV  ·  "verlaufen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verlaufeevrlaufe · velraufe · veralufe · verlafue · verlauef · verlauffe · verllaufe · verluafe
  • verlaufenevrlaufen · velraufen · veralufen · verlafuen · verlauefn · verlaufenn · verlauffen · verlaufne

Frequency comparison

verlaufe#27,548
verlaufen#5,126

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verlaufe" and "verlaufen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯fə] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯fn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verlaufe" or "verlaufen"?
"verlaufen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,126 in our German list, against #27,548 for "verlaufe". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verlaufe vs verlaufen

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 “verlaufe” 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