verrücktenvsvorrückenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: verrückten is a adjective, vorrücken is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“verrückten” is an adjective and “vorrücken” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#13,055
“verrückten” frequency rank
#30,377
“vorrücken” frequency rank
43432
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verrückten vorrücken
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs verrückt ein Stück vorwärts kommen; in Richtung des Feindes marschieren

Where the spellings diverge

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

10 ch
verrückten
9 ch
vorrücken

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verrückten is [fɛɐ̯ˈʁʏktn̩] while vorrücken is [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌʁʏkn̩]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43432, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verrückten is recorded at frequency rank #13,055, classified as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʁʏktn̩]. vorrücken is at rank #30,377, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌʁʏkn̩].

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 43432, this pair ranks #1,418,310 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of verrückten vs vorrücken

Shared letters: ceknrvü. Private to "verrückten": t. Private to "vorrücken": o.

"verrückten" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCCVC  ·  "vorrücken" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

verrückten#13,055
vorrücken#30,377

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verrückten" and "vorrücken" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "verrückten" is an adjective and "vorrücken" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "verrückten" or "vorrücken"?
"verrückten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,055 in our German list, against #30,377 for "vorrücken". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verrückten vs vorrücken

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “verrückten”; for a verb, it's “vorrücken”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verrückten” 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