Which to use
“wahre” is an adjective and “währen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,274
- “wahre” frequency rank
- #34,465
- “währen” frequency rank
- 36739
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wahre | währen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs wahr | sich über eine Zeitspanne erstrecken |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set wahre and währen apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: wahre is [ˈvaːʁə] while währen is [ˈvɛːʁən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36739, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wahre is recorded at frequency rank #2,274, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈvaːʁə]. währen is at rank #34,465, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvɛːʁən].
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 36739, this pair ranks #1,607,891 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of wahre vs währen
Shared letters: ehrw. Private to "wahre": a. Private to "währen": nä.
"wahre" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "währen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- wahre ← awhre · waher · wahhre · wahrre · warhe · whare · wwahre
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "wahre" and "währen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "wahre" or "währen"?
Remembering wahre vs währen
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “wahre”; for a verb, it's “währen”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “wahre” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable