Which to use
“Vertrag” is a noun and “vertrau” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,172
- “Vertrag” frequency rank
- #32,840
- “vertrau” frequency rank
- 34012
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Vertrag | vertrau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | rechtlich bindende Vereinbarung zwischen mindestens zwei verschiedenen Partnern | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs vertrauen |
Where the eye mixes Vertrag and vertrau
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Vertrag with vertrau
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Vertrag is [fɛɐ̯ˈtʁaːk] while vertrau is [fɛɐ̯ˈtʁaʊ̯]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - g in “Vertrag” becomes u in “vertrau”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34012, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Vertrag is recorded at frequency rank #1,172, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈtʁaːk]. vertrau is at rank #32,840, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈtʁaʊ̯].
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 34012, this pair ranks #1,672,984 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Vertrag vs vertrau
Shared letters: aertv. Private to "Vertrag": g. Private to "vertrau": u.
"Vertrag" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "vertrau" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Vertrag" and "vertrau" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Vertrag" vs "vertrau" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Vertrag" and "vertrau" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Vertrag" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "vertrau" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,672,984 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Vertrag" and "vertrau" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vertrau vs vertraust". 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 #1,672,984 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.