Which to use
“erfuhren” and “ernähren” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,343
- “erfuhren” frequency rank
- #7,910
- “ernähren” frequency rank
- 23253
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erfuhren | ernähren |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs erfahren | regelmäßig für Nahrung sorgen |
Where the eye mixes erfuhren and ernähren
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. erfuhren and ernähren follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between erfuhren and ernähren
A purely visual mix-up. erfuhren ([ɛɐ̯ˈfuːʁən]) 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 23253, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erfuhren is recorded at frequency rank #15,343, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfuːʁən]. 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 23253, this pair ranks #1,863,711 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erfuhren vs ernähren
Shared letters: ehnr. Private to "erfuhren": fu. Private to "ernähren": ä.
"erfuhren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "ernähren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- erfuhren ← efruhren · erffuhren · erfhuren · erfuhern · erfuhhren · erfuhrenn · erfuhrne · erfuhrren
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erfuhren" for "ernähren" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "erfuhren" or "ernähren" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "erfuhren" and "ernähren" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "erfuhren" 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 #1,863,711 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erfuhren" and "ernähren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erfroren vs erfuhren". 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 #1,863,711 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.