Which to use
“erfolgen” and “erfüllen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,589
- “erfolgen” frequency rank
- #2,709
- “erfüllen” frequency rank
- 5298
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erfolgen | erfüllen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | stattfinden, sich ereignen, getan werden (der Inhalt des Tuns steckt im Subjekt des Satzes) | die Gedanken beherrschen, starke Gefühle auslösen |
Where the eye mixes erfolgen and erfüllen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. erfolgen and erfüllen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses erfolgen with erfüllen
A purely visual mix-up. erfolgen ([ɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡn̩]) and erfüllen ([ɛɐ̯ˈfʏlən]) 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 5298, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erfolgen is recorded at frequency rank #2,589, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡn̩]. erfüllen is at rank #2,709, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfʏlən].
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 5298, this pair ranks #1,995,206 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erfolgen vs erfüllen
Shared letters: eflnr. Private to "erfolgen": go. Private to "erfüllen": ü.
"erfolgen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "erfüllen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- erfolgen ← efrolgen · erffolgen · erflogen · erfoglen · erfolegn · erfolgenn · erfolggen · erfolgne
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "erfolgen" and "erfüllen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "erfolgen" or "erfüllen"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erfolgen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erfüllen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,995,206 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erfolgen" and "erfüllen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erfüllen vs erfülltes". 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 #1,995,206 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.