verb

verrechnen

offset · miscalculate

Definition & meaning

verrechnen has several related meanings:

To miscalculate — most often used reflexively as sich verrechnen: to make a mistake in arithmetic or in a calculation.
Example: Ich habe mich verrechnet. — “I miscalculated.”
To charge or bill someone for something — to include a cost in a bill. This use is especially common in Austria and Switzerland.
Example: Die Gebühr wird dem Kunden verrechnet. — “The fee is charged to the customer.”
To offset or account for one amount against another — to balance amounts in an account or calculation.
Example: Die Kosten werden miteinander verrechnet. — “The costs are offset against each other.”

Grammar & Word origin

verrechnen is a verb formed from the prefix ver- and rechnen , “to calculate” or “to do arithmetic.” The prefix changes the meaning of the base verb.

It is an inseparable verb: the stress does not fall on the prefix, and the prefix stays attached in conjugated forms.

Present: verrechnet
Simple past: verrechnete
Perfect: hat verrechnet
Reflexive perfect: hat sich verrechnet

For the meaning “to make a calculation error,” it is normally reflexive: sich verrechnen .

Synonyms & antonyms

The best synonym depends on the meaning:

falsch rechnen — “to calculate incorrectly”; a direct, plain-language equivalent of the miscalculation sense.
sich verkalkulieren — “to misjudge or underestimate”; often broader than sich verrechnen [?](vocabuo://word/sich%20verrechnen], especially when estimating costs or plans rather than doing arithmetic.
berechnen — “to calculate” or “to charge”; it does not itself imply an error or the offsetting of amounts.
in Rechnung stellen — “to invoice” or “to bill”; it explicitly refers to placing a charge on an invoice.
anrechnen — “to credit” or “to count toward”; it emphasizes giving an amount credit rather than simply balancing accounts.

There is no single antonym for every sense. For the calculation-error meaning, richtig rechnen (“to calculate correctly”) is a straightforward opposite. For the billing meaning, erlassen (“to waive”) can be an opposite in context, though it means canceling a charge rather than the direct reverse of billing.