weilenvswerbenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#47,125
“weilen” frequency rank
#6,610
“werben” frequency rank
53735
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature weilen werben
Definition sich an einem Ort aufhalten, an einem Ort bleiben bekanntmachen, zum Kauf auffordern

Where the eye mixes weilen and werben

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. weilen (CVVCVC) and werben (CVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

6 ch
weilen
6 ch
werben

Visual trap between weilen and werben

A purely visual mix-up. weilen ([ˈvaɪ̯lən]) and werben ([ˈvɛʁbn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53735, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

weilen is recorded at frequency rank #47,125, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯lən]. werben is at rank #6,610, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvɛʁbn̩].

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 53735, this pair ranks #1,046,370 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of weilen vs werben

Shared letters: enw. Private to "weilen": il. Private to "werben": br.

"weilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "werben" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • weilen ← ewilen · weieln · weilenn · weillen · weilne · welien · wielen · wweilen
  • werben ← ewrben · webren · werbben · werbenn · werbne · werebn · werrben · wreben

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "weilen" for "werben" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈvaɪ̯lən] versus [ˈvɛʁbn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "weilen" vs "werben" - which ranks higher?
"werben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,610 in our German list, against #47,125 for "weilen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "weilen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "werben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,046,370 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "weilen" and "werben" 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 #1,046,370 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