einkauftvserkauftWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#45,884
“einkauft” frequency rank
#35,749
“erkauft” frequency rank
81633
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature einkauft erkauft
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs einkaufen 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erkaufen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set einkauft and erkauft apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
einkauft
7 ch
erkauft

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. einkauft ([ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯ft]) and erkauft ([ɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯ft]) 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 81633, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

einkauft is recorded at frequency rank #45,884, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯ft]. erkauft is at rank #35,749, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯ft].

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 81633, this pair ranks #172,073 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of einkauft vs erkauft

Shared letters: aefktu. Private to "einkauft": in. Private to "erkauft": r.

"einkauft" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVVCC  ·  "erkauft" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • einkaufteiknauft · einakuft · einkafut · einkaufft · einkauftt · einkautf · einkkauft · einkuaft
  • erkauftekrauft · erakuft · erkafut · erkaufft · erkauftt · erkautf · erkkauft · erkuaft

Frequency comparison

einkauft#45,884
erkauft#35,749

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "einkauft" and "erkauft" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaɪ̯nˌkaʊ̯ft] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈkaʊ̯ft]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "einkauft" or "erkauft"?
"erkauft" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #35,749 in our German list, against #45,884 for "einkauft". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering einkauft vs erkauft

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 “einkauft” 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