vorgeschriebenvsvorgeschriebenenWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#9,835
“vorgeschrieben” frequency rank
#16,876
“vorgeschriebenen” frequency rank
26711
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vorgeschrieben vorgeschriebenen
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs vorschreiben Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs vorgeschrieben

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vorgeschrieben and vorgeschriebenen apart are highlighted. They share 14 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

14 ch
vorgeschrieben
16 ch
vorgeschriebenen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vorgeschrieben is [ˈfoːɐ̯ɡəˌʃʁiːbn̩] while vorgeschriebenen is [ˈfoːɐ̯ɡəˌʃʁiːbənən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “vorgeschrieben” sits inside “vorgeschriebenen”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26711, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vorgeschrieben is recorded at frequency rank #9,835, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ɡəˌʃʁiːbn̩]. vorgeschriebenen is at rank #16,876, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈfoːɐ̯ɡəˌʃʁiːbənən].

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 26711, this pair ranks #1,813,685 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vorgeschrieben vs vorgeschriebenen

Shared letters: bceghinorsv. Private to "vorgeschrieben": -. Private to "vorgeschriebenen": -.

"vorgeschrieben" · 14 letters · shape CVCCVCCCCVVCVC  ·  "vorgeschriebenen" · 16 letters · shape CVCCVCCCCVVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vorgeschriebenovrgeschrieben · vogreschrieben · voregschrieben · vorgecshrieben · vorgescchrieben · vorgeschhrieben · vorgeschireben · vorgeschreiben
  • vorgeschriebenenovrgeschriebenen · vogreschriebenen · voregschriebenen · vorgecshriebenen · vorgescchriebenen · vorgeschhriebenen · vorgeschirebenen · vorgeschreibenen

Frequency comparison

vorgeschrieben#9,835
vorgeschriebenen#16,876

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vorgeschrieben" and "vorgeschriebenen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "vorgeschrieben" is a verb and "vorgeschriebenen" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "vorgeschrieben" or "vorgeschriebenen"?
"vorgeschrieben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,835 in our German list, against #16,876 for "vorgeschriebenen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering vorgeschrieben vs vorgeschriebenen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “vorgeschrieben”; for an adjective, it's “vorgeschriebenen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “vorgeschrieben” 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