vorgehenvsvorziehenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#3,006
“vorgehen” frequency rank
#19,762
“vorziehen” frequency rank
22768
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vorgehen vorziehen
Definition sich nach vorne bewegen nach vorne bewegen

Where the eye mixes vorgehen and vorziehen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. vorgehen runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVC) against vorziehen's 9 (CVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
vorgehen
9 ch
vorziehen

Look-alike desk: vorgehen vs vorziehen

A purely visual mix-up. vorgehen ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡeːən]) and vorziehen ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌt͡siːən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22768, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vorgehen is recorded at frequency rank #3,006, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡeːən]. vorziehen is at rank #19,762, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌt͡siːən].

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 22768, this pair ranks #1,870,008 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vorgehen vs vorziehen

Shared letters: ehnorv. Private to "vorgehen": g. Private to "vorziehen": iz.

"vorgehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "vorziehen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vorgehen ← ovrgehen · vogrehen · voreghen · vorgeehn · vorgehenn · vorgehhen · vorgehne · vorggehen
  • vorziehen ← ovrziehen · vorizehen · vorrziehen · vorzeihen · vorzieehn · vorziehenn · vorziehhen · vorziehne

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vorgehen" and "vorziehen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfoːɐ̯ˌɡeːən] versus [ˈfoːɐ̯ˌt͡siːən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "vorgehen" or "vorziehen"?
"vorgehen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,006 in our German list, against #19,762 for "vorziehen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "vorgehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "vorziehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,870,008 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vorgehen" and "vorziehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Vogesen vs vorgehen". 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 #1,870,008 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list