verzögernvsverzögertWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: verzögern is a verb, verzögert is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“verzögern” is a verb and “verzögert” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#21,468
“verzögern” frequency rank
#11,150
“verzögert” frequency rank
32618
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verzögern verzögert
Definition einen Ablauf unterbrechen, so dass ein bestimmtes Ereignis später eintrifft später geschehen, als erwartet oder vorgesehen; unplanmäßig spät

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verzögern and verzögert apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
verzögern
9 ch
verzögert

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verzögern is [fɛɐ̯ˈt͡søːɡɐn] while verzögert is [fɛɐ̯ˈt͡søːɡɐt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - n in “verzögern” becomes t in “verzögert”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32618, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verzögern is recorded at frequency rank #21,468, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈt͡søːɡɐn]. verzögert is at rank #11,150, tagged as anadj, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈt͡søːɡɐt].

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 32618, this pair ranks #1,703,758 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verzögern vs verzögert

Shared letters: egrvzö. Private to "verzögern": n. Private to "verzögert": t.

"verzögern" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVCC  ·  "verzögert" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVCC

Frequency comparison

verzögern#21,468
verzögert#11,150

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verzögern" and "verzögert" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "verzögern" is a verb and "verzögert" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "verzögern" or "verzögert"?
"verzögert" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,150 in our German list, against #21,468 for "verzögern". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verzögern vs verzögert

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “verzögern”; for an adjective, it's “verzögert”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verzögern” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list