einbrechenvserbrechenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“einbrechen” and “erbrechen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#26,370
“einbrechen” frequency rank
#17,871
“erbrechen” frequency rank
44241
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature einbrechen erbrechen
Definition in ein Gebäude (beziehungsweise bei jemandem) eindringen ohne dazu befugt zu sein, oft mit Gewalt und Zerstörung von etwas verbunden seinen Mageninhalt durch den Mund entleeren; sich übergeben

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set einbrechen and erbrechen apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
einbrechen
9 ch
erbrechen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. einbrechen ([ˈaɪ̯nˌbʁɛçn̩]) and erbrechen ([ɛɐ̯ˈbʁɛçn̩]) 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 44241, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

einbrechen is recorded at frequency rank #26,370, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nˌbʁɛçn̩]. erbrechen is at rank #17,871, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈbʁɛçn̩].

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 44241, this pair ranks #1,392,446 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of einbrechen vs erbrechen

Shared letters: bcehnr. Private to "einbrechen": i. Private to "erbrechen": -.

"einbrechen" · 10 letters · shape VVCCCVCCVC  ·  "erbrechen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • einbrecheneibnrechen · einbbrechen · einberchen · einbrcehen · einbrecchen · einbrecehn · einbrechenn · einbrechhen
  • erbrechenebrrechen · erbbrechen · erberchen · erbrcehen · erbrecchen · erbrecehn · erbrechenn · erbrechhen

Frequency comparison

einbrechen#26,370
erbrechen#17,871

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "einbrechen" and "erbrechen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaɪ̯nˌbʁɛçn̩] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈbʁɛçn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "einbrechen" or "erbrechen"?
"erbrechen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,871 in our German list, against #26,370 for "einbrechen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering einbrechen vs erbrechen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “einbrechen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

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