verliehenvsvermiesenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#5,662
“verliehen” frequency rank
#42,231
“vermiesen” frequency rank
47893
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verliehen vermiesen
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs verleihen etwas Schönes (das jemand anderes erlebt, wie Freude, Spass oder gute Stimmung) stören/verderben

Where the eye mixes verliehen and vermiesen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

9 ch
verliehen
9 ch
vermiesen

Why the eye confuses verliehen with vermiesen

A purely visual mix-up. verliehen ([fɛɐ̯ˈliːən]) and vermiesen ([fɛɐ̯ˈmiːzn̩]) 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 47893, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verliehen is recorded at frequency rank #5,662, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈliːən]. vermiesen is at rank #42,231, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈmiːzn̩].

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 47893, this pair ranks #1,268,202 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verliehen vs vermiesen

Shared letters: einrv. Private to "verliehen": hl. Private to "vermiesen": ms.

"verliehen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC  ·  "vermiesen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verliehenevrliehen · velriehen · verilehen · verlieehn · verliehenn · verliehhen · verliehne · verliheen
  • vermiesenevrmiesen · vemriesen · verimesen · vermeisen · vermieesn · vermiesenn · vermiesne · vermiessen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verliehen" and "vermiesen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈliːən] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈmiːzn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "verliehen" vs "vermiesen" - which ranks higher?
"verliehen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,662 in our German list, against #42,231 for "vermiesen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "verliehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "vermiesen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,268,202 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verliehen" and "vermiesen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verbissen vs vermiesen". 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 #1,268,202 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list