vermeidenvsVermeidungTell them apart

Quick tell: vermeiden is a verb, Vermeidung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“vermeiden” is a verb and “Vermeidung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,369
“vermeiden” frequency rank
#11,774
“Vermeidung” frequency rank
14143
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vermeiden Vermeidung
Definition etwas wenn möglich nicht tun; so handeln, dass etwas möglichst nicht passiert das vorsätzliche Vermeiden von etwas

Where the eye mixes vermeiden and Vermeidung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. vermeiden runs 9 letters (CVCCVVCVC) against Vermeidung's 10 (CVCCVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
vermeiden
10 ch
Vermeidung

Why the eye confuses vermeiden with Vermeidung

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vermeiden is [fɛɐ̯ˈmaɪ̯dn̩] while Vermeidung is [fɛɐ̯ˈmaɪ̯dʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14143, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vermeiden is recorded at frequency rank #2,369, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈmaɪ̯dn̩]. Vermeidung is at rank #11,774, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈmaɪ̯dʊŋ].

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 14143, this pair ranks #1,953,273 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vermeiden vs Vermeidung

Shared letters: deimnrv. Private to "vermeiden": -. Private to "Vermeidung": gu.

"vermeiden" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC  ·  "Vermeidung" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vermeiden ← evrmeiden · vemreiden · veremiden · vermedien · vermeidden · vermeidenn · vermeidne · vermeiedn
  • Vermeidung ← evrmeidung · vemreidung · veremidung · vermediung · vermeiddung · vermeidnug · vermeidugn · vermeidungg

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vermeiden" and "Vermeidung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "vermeiden" is a verb and "Vermeidung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "vermeiden" vs "Vermeidung" - which ranks higher?
"vermeiden" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,369 in our German list, against #11,774 for "Vermeidung". 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 "vermeiden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Vermeidung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,953,273 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vermeiden" and "Vermeidung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vermeiden vs vermeldet". 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 #1,953,273 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