vonvsvoorWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“von” and “voor” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#11
“von” frequency rank
#47,106
“voor” frequency rank
47117
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature von voor
Definition Ursprung räumlicher oder zeitlicher Veränderung, Herkunft, Gegenstand der Betrachtung, Ursache, sonstige Verhältnisse gibt eine zeitliche/örtliche Reihenfolge an

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set von and voor apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
von
4 ch
voor

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

von and voor form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47117, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

von is recorded at frequency rank #11, classified as aprep, pronounced [fɔn]. voor is at rank #47,106, tagged as aprep, pronounced [voːr].

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 47117, this pair ranks #1,295,591 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

von#11
voor#47,106

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "von" and "voor" be used interchangeably?
No, "von" and "voor" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering von vs voor

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 “von” 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