Which to use
“zeigen” and “zerren” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #448
- “zeigen” frequency rank
- #28,034
- “zerren” frequency rank
- 28482
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | zeigen | zerren |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemanden etwas sehen lassen | etwas/jemanden mit großem Kraftaufwand bewegen |
Where the eye mixes zeigen and zerren
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between zeigen and zerren
A purely visual mix-up. zeigen ([ˈt͡saɪ̯ɡn̩]) and zerren ([ˈt͡sɛʁən]) 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 28482, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
zeigen is recorded at frequency rank #448, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡saɪ̯ɡn̩]. zerren is at rank #28,034, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛʁən].
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 28482, this pair ranks #1,783,967 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of zeigen vs zerren
Shared letters: enz. Private to "zeigen": gi. Private to "zerren": r.
"zeigen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "zerren" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "zeigen" and "zerren" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "zeigen" vs "zerren" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "zeigen" and "zerren" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "zeigen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "zerren" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,783,967 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "zeigen" and "zerren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "zechen vs zerren". 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 #1,783,967 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.