Which to use
“erfahren” and “ernähren” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,074
- “erfahren” frequency rank
- #7,910
- “ernähren” frequency rank
- 8984
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erfahren | ernähren |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | durch eigenes Erleben kennen lernen | regelmäßig für Nahrung sorgen |
Where the eye mixes erfahren and ernähren
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: erfahren vs ernähren
A purely visual mix-up. erfahren ([ɛɐ̯ˈfaːʁən]) and ernähren ([ɛɐ̯ˈnɛːʁən]) 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 8984, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erfahren is recorded at frequency rank #1,074, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfaːʁən]. ernähren is at rank #7,910, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈnɛːʁən].
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 8984, this pair ranks #1,981,948 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erfahren vs ernähren
Shared letters: ehnr. Private to "erfahren": af. Private to "ernähren": ä.
"erfahren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "ernähren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- erfahren ← efrahren · erafhren · erfahern · erfahhren · erfahrenn · erfahrne · erfahrren · erfarhen
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erfahren" and "ernähren" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "erfahren" vs "ernähren" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "erfahren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ernähren" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,981,948 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erfahren" and "ernähren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ernähre vs ernähren". 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 #1,981,948 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.