Which to use
“würgen” and “wüten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,877
- “würgen” frequency rank
- #42,274
- “wüten” frequency rank
- 72151
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | würgen | wüten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem die Kehle zudrücken | kraftvoll agierend und oft ungerichtet Zerstörungen anrichten |
Where the eye mixes würgen and wüten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. würgen runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against wüten's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses würgen with wüten
A purely visual mix-up. würgen ([ˈvʏʁɡn̩]) and wüten ([ˈvyːtn̩]) 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 72151, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
würgen is recorded at frequency rank #29,877, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvʏʁɡn̩]. wüten is at rank #42,274, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvyːtn̩].
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 72151, this pair ranks #396,358 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of würgen vs wüten
Shared letters: enwü. Private to "würgen": gr. Private to "wüten": t.
"würgen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "wüten" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "würgen" and "wüten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "würgen" or "wüten"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "würgen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wüten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #396,358 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "würgen" and "wüten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Wotan vs wüten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #396,358 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.