erklär vs erklärt, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#15,077
“erklär” frequency rank: #760
“erklärt” frequency rank: 15837
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	erklär	erklärt
Definition	2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erklären	Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erklären

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch

erklär

7 ch

erklärt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. erklär ([ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯]) and erklärt ([ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯t]) 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 extra letter(s) - “erklär” sits inside “erklärt”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15837, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erklär is recorded at frequency rank #15,077, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯]. erklärt is at rank #760, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯t].

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 15837, this pair ranks #1,940,759 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of erklär vs erklärt

Shared letters: eklrä. Private to "erklär": -. Private to "erklärt": t.

"erklär" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC · "erklärt" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCC

Frequency comparison

erklär#15,077

erklärt#760

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erklär" and "erklärt" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯t]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "erklär" or "erklärt"?

"erklärt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #760 in our German list, against #15,077 for "erklär". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering erklär vs erklärt

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 “erklär” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable