erbetenvserntenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#28,632
“erbeten” frequency rank
#12,066
“ernten” frequency rank
40698
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erbeten ernten
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erbitten Nutzpflanzen von den Feldern einholen

Where the eye mixes erbeten and ernten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. erbeten runs 7 letters (VCCVCVC) against ernten's 6 (VCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
erbeten
6 ch
ernten

Look-alike desk: erbeten vs ernten

A purely visual mix-up. erbeten ([ɛɐ̯ˈbeːtn̩]) and ernten ([ˈɛʁntn̩]) 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 40698, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erbeten is recorded at frequency rank #28,632, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈbeːtn̩]. ernten is at rank #12,066, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈɛʁntn̩].

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 40698, this pair ranks #1,501,011 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of erbeten vs ernten

Shared letters: enrt. Private to "erbeten": b. Private to "ernten": -.

"erbeten" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "ernten" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erbeten ← ebreten · erbbeten · erbeetn · erbetenn · erbetne · erbetten · erbteen · erebten
  • ernten ← enrten · ernetn · ernnten · erntenn · erntne · erntten · errnten · ertnen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erbeten" and "ernten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈbeːtn̩] versus [ˈɛʁntn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "erbeten" or "ernten" show up more?
"ernten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,066 in our German list, against #28,632 for "erbeten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "erbeten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ernten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,501,011 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "erbeten" and "ernten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erbeten vs erregten". 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 #1,501,011 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