Which to use
“verschlingen” is a verb and “verschwiegen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #26,219
- “verschlingen” frequency rank
- #13,057
- “verschwiegen” frequency rank
- 39276
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verschlingen | verschwiegen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (auch übertragen) gierig oder hastig in sich aufnehmen, essen, fressen | fähig zu schweigen, ein Geheimnis für sich zu behalten |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verschlingen and verschwiegen apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verschlingen is [fɛɐ̯ˈʃlɪŋən] while verschwiegen is [fɛɐ̯ˈʃviːɡn̩]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39276, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verschlingen is recorded at frequency rank #26,219, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃlɪŋən]. verschwiegen is at rank #13,057, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃviːɡn̩].
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 39276, this pair ranks #1,541,224 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of verschlingen vs verschwiegen
Shared letters: ceghinrsv. Private to "verschlingen": l. Private to "verschwiegen": w.
"verschlingen" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCCCVCCVC · "verschwiegen" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- verschlingen ← evrschlingen · vercshlingen · verrschlingen · verscchlingen · verschhlingen · verschilngen · verschlignen · verschlinegn
- verschwiegen ← evrschwiegen · vercshwiegen · verrschwiegen · verscchwiegen · verschhwiegen · verschiwegen · verschwieegn · verschwiegenn
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verschlingen" and "verschwiegen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verschlingen" or "verschwiegen"?
Remembering verschlingen vs verschwiegen
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “verschlingen”; for an adjective, it's “verschwiegen”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verschlingen” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable