Which to use
“vermessen” is an adjective and “vermiesen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #19,068
- “vermessen” frequency rank
- #42,231
- “vermiesen” frequency rank
- 61299
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vermessen | vermiesen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | übermäßig ehrgeizig und deshalb riskant | etwas Schönes (das jemand anderes erlebt, wie Freude, Spass oder gute Stimmung) stören/verderben |
Where the eye mixes vermessen and vermiesen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. vermessen (CVCCVCCVC) and vermiesen (CVCCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between vermessen and vermiesen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vermessen is [fɛɐ̯ˈmɛsn̩] while vermiesen is [fɛɐ̯ˈmiːzn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61299, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vermessen is recorded at frequency rank #19,068, classified as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈmɛsn̩]. 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 61299, this pair ranks #754,971 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of vermessen vs vermiesen
Shared letters: emnrsv. Private to "vermessen": -. Private to "vermiesen": i.
"vermessen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "vermiesen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "vermessen" and "vermiesen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "vermessen" vs "vermiesen" - which ranks higher?
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 "vermessen" 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 #754,971 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vermessen" 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 #754,971 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.