Which to use
“verschreiben” and “verschweigen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #28,914
- “verschreiben” frequency rank
- #16,314
- “verschweigen” frequency rank
- 45228
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verschreiben | verschweigen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | beim Schreiben (aus Versehen) einen Fehler machen | bewusst nicht sagen oder aussprechen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verschreiben and verschweigen apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. verschreiben ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]) and verschweigen ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃvaɪ̯ɡn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45228, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verschreiben is recorded at frequency rank #28,914, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃʁaɪ̯bn̩]. verschweigen is at rank #16,314, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃvaɪ̯ɡn̩].
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 45228, this pair ranks #1,360,209 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verschreiben vs verschweigen
Shared letters: cehinrsv. Private to "verschreiben": b. Private to "verschweigen": gw.
"verschreiben" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCCCVVCVC · "verschweigen" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- verschreiben ← evrschreiben · vercshreiben · verrschreiben · verscchreiben · verscheriben · verschhreiben · verschrebien · verschreibben
- verschweigen ← evrschweigen · vercshweigen · verrschweigen · verscchweigen · verschewigen · verschhweigen · verschwegien · verschweiegn
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verschreiben" and "verschweigen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verschreiben" or "verschweigen"?
Remembering verschreiben vs verschweigen
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 “verschreiben” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable