Verspätung

[fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ]

/[fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ]/ noun

The verdict

“Verspätung” is a regularly-used German word, ranked #7,418 in German word frequency and used as a noun.

#7,418
frequency rank, German
10
letters
16
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - die Tatsache, dass ein Ereignis später als geplant eintritt

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Verspätung vs Verspätungen
83% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for Verspätung
PropertyValue
HeadwordVerspätung
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ]
Letters10
Frequency rank#7,418
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Verspätung” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). Verspätung lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for Verspätung is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ]. Corpus data places it at rank #7,418 in overall German word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for Verspätung, with forms such as "evrspätung", "verpsätung", and "verrspätung". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Verspätungen", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct German form is Verspätung, spelled V-E-R-S-P-Ä-T-U-N-G, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    die Tatsache, dass ein Ereignis später als geplant eintritt
  2. 2
    die Länge des Zeitintervalls, um das ein Ereignis später als geplant eintritt

Antonyms

PünktlichkeitVerfrühung

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: evrspätung,verpsätung,verrspätung,versppätung,versptäung,verspätnug,verspättung,verspätugn,verspätungg,verspätunng,verspäutng,versspätung,versäptung,vesrpätung,vrespätung,vverspätung

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Verspätung - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

evrspätung2verpsätung2verrspätung1versppätung1versptäung2verspätnug2verspättung1verspätugn2
Edit distance from "Verspätung"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Cite this page

Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY-SA). Copy the citation:

PlainSpell, “Verspätung, German word data” (May 6, 2026). Derived from Wiktionary (kaikki.org, CC BY-SA) and an open word-frequency list. https://plainspell.com/de/wort/verspatung

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Verspätung"?
"Verspätung" is spelled V-E-R-S-P-Ä-T-U-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is [fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ].
What does "Verspätung" mean?
As a noun, "Verspätung" means: die Tatsache, dass ein Ereignis später als geplant eintritt
What words are commonly confused with "Verspätung"?
"Verspätung" is commonly confused with "Verspätungen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Verspätung"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Verspätung" is [fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Verspätung" come from?
"Verspätung" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “Verspätung”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is V-E-R-S-P-Ä-T-U-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [fɛɐ̯ˈʃpɛːtʊŋ] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Verspätungen” - see the side-by-side comparison. Verspätung vs Verspätungen
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words

Nearby German words

Other entries that begin with the letter V in our German index:

Explore PlainSpell

Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list