Which to use
“verwöhnen” is a verb and “verwöhnte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,253
- “verwöhnen” frequency rank
- #43,606
- “verwöhnte” frequency rank
- 58859
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | verwöhnen | verwöhnte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem Gutes tun, indem man ihm besondere Vorteile zukommen lässt und vor Unbehagen schützt, und dies, ohne eine besondere Gegenleistung zu erwarten/erhalten | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs verwöhnt |
Where the eye mixes verwöhnen and verwöhnte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. verwöhnen (CVCCVCCVC) and verwöhnte (CVCCVCCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses verwöhnen with verwöhnte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verwöhnen is [fɛɐ̯ˈvøːnən] while verwöhnte is [fɛɐ̯ˈvøːntə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58859, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
verwöhnen is recorded at frequency rank #15,253, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈvøːnən]. verwöhnte is at rank #43,606, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈvøːntə].
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 58859, this pair ranks #846,610 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of verwöhnen vs verwöhnte
Shared letters: ehnrvwö. Private to "verwöhnen": -. Private to "verwöhnte": t.
"verwöhnen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "verwöhnte" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "verwöhnen" for "verwöhnte" ever safe?
Frequency check: "verwöhnen" vs "verwöhnte" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "verwöhnen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "verwöhnte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #846,610 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "verwöhnen" and "verwöhnte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "versöhnt vs verwöhnte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #846,610 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.