Which to use
“verweisen” and “verwerfen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,421
- “verweisen” frequency rank
- #36,099
- “verwerfen” frequency rank
- 43520
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verweisen | verwerfen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | auf etwas Anderes aufmerksam machen | (nach reiflicher Überlegung) etwas aufgeben, nicht weiter verfolgen, weil es als nicht mehr annehmbar, brauchbar, durchführbar, geeignet, tauglich, realisierbar oder dergleichen befunden wird |
Where the eye mixes verweisen and verwerfen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. verweisen (CVCCVVCVC) and verwerfen (CVCCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: verweisen vs verwerfen
A purely visual mix-up. verweisen ([fɛɐ̯ˈvaɪ̯zn̩]) and verwerfen ([fɛɐ̯ˈvɛʁfn̩]) 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 43520, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verweisen is recorded at frequency rank #7,421, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈvaɪ̯zn̩]. verwerfen is at rank #36,099, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈvɛʁfn̩].
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 43520, this pair ranks #1,415,475 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verweisen vs verwerfen
Shared letters: enrvw. Private to "verweisen": is. Private to "verwerfen": f.
"verweisen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC · "verwerfen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "verweisen" and "verwerfen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "verweisen" or "verwerfen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "verweisen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verwerfen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,415,475 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verweisen" and "verwerfen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "verwerfen vs verworren". 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 #1,415,475 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.