Which to use
“erfüllen” is a verb and “erfülltes” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,709
- “erfüllen” frequency rank
- #45,249
- “erfülltes” frequency rank
- 47958
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erfüllen | erfülltes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | die Gedanken beherrschen, starke Gefühle auslösen | Nominativ Singular Neutrum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erfüllt |
Where the eye mixes erfüllen and erfülltes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. erfüllen runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against erfülltes's 9 (VCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between erfüllen and erfülltes
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erfüllen is [ɛɐ̯ˈfʏlən] while erfülltes is [ɛɐ̯ˈfʏltəs]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47958, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erfüllen is recorded at frequency rank #2,709, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfʏlən]. erfülltes is at rank #45,249, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈfʏltəs].
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 47958, this pair ranks #1,265,887 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of erfüllen vs erfülltes
Shared letters: eflrü. Private to "erfüllen": n. Private to "erfülltes": st.
"erfüllen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "erfülltes" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "erfüllen" and "erfülltes" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "erfüllen" vs "erfülltes" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erfüllen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erfülltes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,265,887 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erfüllen" and "erfülltes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erfüllten vs erfülltes". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,265,887 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.