versperrtvsverzerrtWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#23,771
“versperrt” frequency rank
#20,117
“verzerrt” frequency rank
43888
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature versperrt verzerrt
Definition 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs versperren Partizip Perfekt des Verbs verzerren

Where the eye mixes versperrt and verzerrt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

9 ch
versperrt
8 ch
verzerrt

Why the eye confuses versperrt with verzerrt

A purely visual mix-up. versperrt ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛʁt]) and verzerrt ([fɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛʁt]) 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 43888, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

versperrt is recorded at frequency rank #23,771, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛʁt]. verzerrt is at rank #20,117, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛʁt].

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 43888, this pair ranks #1,403,764 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of versperrt vs verzerrt

Shared letters: ertv. Private to "versperrt": ps. Private to "verzerrt": z.

"versperrt" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCCC  ·  "verzerrt" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • versperrtevrsperrt · verpserrt · verrsperrt · verseprrt · versperrtt · verspert · verspertr · verspperrt
  • verzerrtevrzerrt · verezrrt · verrzerrt · verzerrtt · verzert · verzertr · verzrert · verzzerrt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "versperrt" and "verzerrt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛʁt] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛʁt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "versperrt" vs "verzerrt" - which ranks higher?
"verzerrt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,117 in our German list, against #23,771 for "versperrt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "versperrt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "verzerrt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,403,764 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "versperrt" and "verzerrt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "versperren vs versperrt". 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 #1,403,764 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list