Which to use
“verwehren” and “verwöhnen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,351
- “verwehren” frequency rank
- #15,253
- “verwöhnen” frequency rank
- 46604
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verwehren | verwöhnen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht erlauben, nicht gestatten, verbieten, versperren; jemandem etwas nicht gewähren | jemandem Gutes tun, indem man ihm besondere Vorteile zukommen lässt und vor Unbehagen schützt, und dies, ohne eine besondere Gegenleistung zu erwarten/erhalten |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verwehren and verwöhnen apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. verwehren ([fɛɐ̯ˈveːʁən]) and verwöhnen ([fɛɐ̯ˈvøːnən]) 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 46604, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verwehren is recorded at frequency rank #31,351, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈveːʁən]. verwöhnen is at rank #15,253, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈvøːnən].
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 46604, this pair ranks #1,313,405 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verwehren vs verwöhnen
Shared letters: ehnrvw. Private to "verwehren": -. Private to "verwöhnen": ö.
"verwehren" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verwöhnen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- verwehren ← evrwehren · verewhren · verrwehren · verwehern · verwehhren · verwehrenn · verwehrne · verwehrren
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verwehren" and "verwöhnen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "verwehren" or "verwöhnen"?
Remembering verwehren vs verwöhnen
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 “verwehren” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable