erhältvserholteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: erhält is a verb, erholte is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“erhält” is a verb and “erholte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,548
“erhält” frequency rank
#33,570
“erholte” frequency rank
35118
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erhält erholte
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erhalten Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erholt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set erhält and erholte apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
erhält
7 ch
erholte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erhält is [ɛɐ̯ˈhɛlt] while erholte is [ɛɐ̯ˈhoːltə]. 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 35118, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erhält is recorded at frequency rank #1,548, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈhɛlt]. erholte is at rank #33,570, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈhoːltə].

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 35118, this pair ranks #1,647,624 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of erhält vs erholte

Shared letters: ehlrt. Private to "erhält": ä. Private to "erholte": o.

"erhält" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC  ·  "erholte" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erholteehrolte · erhholte · erhlote · erholet · erhollte · erholtte · erhotle · erohlte

Frequency comparison

erhält#1,548
erholte#33,570

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erhält" and "erholte" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "erhält" is a verb and "erholte" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "erhält" or "erholte"?
"erhält" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,548 in our German list, against #33,570 for "erholte". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering erhält vs erholte

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “erhält”; for an adjective, it's “erholte”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “erhält” 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