Which to use
“ärgern” and “ärgerte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,316
- “ärgern” frequency rank
- #34,475
- “ärgerte” frequency rank
- 42791
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ärgern | ärgerte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (jemanden) necken, Ärger verursachen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs ärgern |
Where the eye mixes ärgern and ärgerte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. ärgern runs 6 letters (VCCVCC) against ärgerte's 7 (VCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between ärgern and ärgerte
A purely visual mix-up. ärgern ([ˈɛʁɡɐn]) and ärgerte ([ˈɛʁɡɐtə]) 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 42791, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ärgern is recorded at frequency rank #8,316, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈɛʁɡɐn]. ärgerte is at rank #34,475, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈɛʁɡɐtə].
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 42791, this pair ranks #1,438,340 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ärgern vs ärgerte
Shared letters: egrä. Private to "ärgern": n. Private to "ärgerte": t.
"ärgern" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC · "ärgerte" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ärgern" for "ärgerte" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "ärgern" or "ärgerte" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "ärgern" and "ärgerte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ärgern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ärgerte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,438,340 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ärgern" and "ärgerte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ärgerte vs ärmere". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,438,340 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.