ErdvsErzWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#28,634
“Erd” frequency rank
#23,924
“Erz” frequency rank
52558
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Erd Erz
Definition der Planet Erde natürlich vorkommende metallhaltige Mineralien und Mineraliengemische, aus denen durch Verhüttung Metalle gewonnen werden

Where the eye mixes Erd and Erz

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

3 ch
Erd
3 ch
Erz

Visual trap between Erd and Erz

A purely visual mix-up. Erd ([ʕɛɾd]) and Erz ([eːɐ̯t͡s]) 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 a single letter - d in “Erd” becomes z in “Erz”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52558, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Erd is recorded at frequency rank #28,634, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʕɛɾd]. Erz is at rank #23,924, tagged as anoun, pronounced [eːɐ̯t͡s].

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 52558, this pair ranks #1,092,084 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Erd vs Erz

Shared letters: er. Private to "Erd": d. Private to "Erz": z.

"Erd" · 3 letters · shape VCC  ·  "Erz" · 3 letters · shape VCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Erd" for "Erz" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ʕɛɾd] versus [eːɐ̯t͡s]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Erd" or "Erz"?
"Erz" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,924 in our German list, against #28,634 for "Erd". 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 "Erd" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Erz" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,092,084 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Erd" and "Erz" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Erd vs Esra". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,092,084 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