verschiebenvsverschreibenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,485
“verschieben” frequency rank
#28,914
“verschreiben” frequency rank
35399
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verschieben verschreiben
Definition etwas über den Boden schiebend von einem an einen anderen Ort bewegen beim Schreiben (aus Versehen) einen Fehler machen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verschieben and verschreiben apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

11 ch
verschieben
12 ch
verschreiben

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verschieben ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃiːbn̩]) and verschreiben ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35399, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verschieben is recorded at frequency rank #6,485, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃiːbn̩]. verschreiben is at rank #28,914, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩].

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 35399, this pair ranks #1,640,954 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verschieben vs verschreiben

Shared letters: bcehinrsv. Private to "verschieben": -. Private to "verschreiben": -.

"verschieben" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCCVVCVC  ·  "verschreiben" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verschiebenevrschieben · vercshieben · verrschieben · verscchieben · verscheiben · verschhieben · verschibeen · verschiebben
  • verschreibenevrschreiben · vercshreiben · verrschreiben · verscchreiben · verscheriben · verschhreiben · verschrebien · verschreibben

Frequency comparison

verschieben#6,485
verschreiben#28,914

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verschieben" and "verschreiben" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃiːbn̩] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verschieben" or "verschreiben"?
"verschieben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,485 in our German list, against #28,914 for "verschreiben". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verschieben vs verschreiben

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 “verschieben” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list