ErbinvsErbseWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#30,533
“Erbin” frequency rank
#46,614
“Erbse” frequency rank
77147
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Erbin Erbse
Definition weibliche Person, der die Güter von Verstorbenen zufallen Same einer Hülsenfrucht

Where the eye mixes Erbin and Erbse

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Erbin (VCCVC) and Erbse (VCCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

5 ch
Erbin
5 ch
Erbse

Look-alike desk: Erbin vs Erbse

A purely visual mix-up. Erbin ([ˈɛʁbɪn]) and Erbse ([ˈɛʁpsə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 77147, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Erbin is recorded at frequency rank #30,533, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈɛʁbɪn]. Erbse is at rank #46,614, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɛʁpsə].

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 77147, this pair ranks #267,406 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Erbin vs Erbse

Shared letters: ber. Private to "Erbin": in. Private to "Erbse": s.

"Erbin" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC  ·  "Erbse" · 5 letters · shape VCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Erbin ← ebrin · erbbin · erbinn · erbni · eribn · errbin · rebin
  • Erbse ← ebrse · erbbse · erbsse · errbse · ersbe · rebse

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Erbin" for "Erbse" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈɛʁbɪn] versus [ˈɛʁpsə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Erbin" or "Erbse"?
"Erbin" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #30,533 in our German list, against #46,614 for "Erbse". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Erbin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Erbse" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #267,406 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Erbin" and "Erbse" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Erbse vs Erle". 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 #267,406 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