entgingvsergingWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#32,506
“entging” frequency rank
#19,893
“erging” frequency rank
52399
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature entging erging
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs entgehen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs ergehen

Where the eye mixes entging and erging

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
entging
6 ch
erging

Why the eye confuses entging with erging

A purely visual mix-up. entging ([ɛntˈɡɪŋ]) and erging ([ɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋ]) 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 52399, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

entging is recorded at frequency rank #32,506, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛntˈɡɪŋ]. erging is at rank #19,893, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋ].

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 52399, this pair ranks #1,098,463 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of entging vs erging

Shared letters: egin. Private to "entging": t. Private to "erging": r.

"entging" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCC  ·  "erging" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • entgingengting · enntging · entgging · entgign · entgingg · entginng · entgnig · entigng
  • ergingergging · ergign · ergingg · erginng · ergnig · erigng · errging · reging

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "entging" and "erging" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛntˈɡɪŋ] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈɡɪŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "entging" vs "erging" - which ranks higher?
"erging" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,893 in our German list, against #32,506 for "entging". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "entging" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "erging" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,098,463 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "entging" and "erging" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eating vs entging". Nearby pair
  • Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #1,098,463 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list