erfolgenvserholenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,589
“erfolgen” frequency rank
#10,466
“erholen” frequency rank
13055
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erfolgen erholen
Definition stattfinden, sich ereignen, getan werden (der Inhalt des Tuns steckt im Subjekt des Satzes) sich entspannen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set erfolgen and erholen apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
erfolgen
7 ch
erholen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. erfolgen ([ɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡn̩]) and erholen ([ɛɐ̯ˈhoːlən]) 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 13055, 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]. erholen is at rank #10,466, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈhoːlən].

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 13055, this pair ranks #1,960,396 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of erfolgen vs erholen

Shared letters: elnor. Private to "erfolgen": fg. Private to "erholen": h.

"erfolgen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "erholen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erfolgenefrolgen · erffolgen · erflogen · erfoglen · erfolegn · erfolgenn · erfolggen · erfolgne
  • erholenehrolen · erhholen · erhloen · erhoeln · erholenn · erhollen · erholne · erohlen

Frequency comparison

erfolgen#2,589
erholen#10,466

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erfolgen" and "erholen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈfɔlɡn̩] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈhoːlən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "erfolgen" or "erholen"?
"erfolgen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,589 in our German list, against #10,466 for "erholen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering erfolgen vs erholen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “erfolgen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list