Which to use
“weigern” and “weilen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,760
- “weigern” frequency rank
- #47,125
- “weilen” frequency rank
- 65885
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | weigern | weilen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ablehnen, etwas zu tun | sich an einem Ort aufhalten, an einem Ort bleiben |
Where the eye mixes weigern and weilen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. weigern runs 7 letters (CVVCVCC) against weilen's 6 (CVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses weigern with weilen
A purely visual mix-up. weigern ([ˈvaɪ̯ɡɐn]) and weilen ([ˈvaɪ̯lən]) 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 65885, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
weigern is recorded at frequency rank #18,760, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯ɡɐn]. weilen is at rank #47,125, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯lən].
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 65885, this pair ranks #591,721 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of weigern vs weilen
Shared letters: einw. Private to "weigern": gr. Private to "weilen": l.
"weigern" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC · "weilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "weigern" for "weilen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "weigern" or "weilen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "weigern" and "weilen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "weigern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "weilen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #591,721 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "weigern" and "weilen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "weilen vs Weines". 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 #591,721 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.