Which to use
“erkläre” and “erklärt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,013
- “erkläre” frequency rank
- #760
- “erklärt” frequency rank
- 9773
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erkläre | erklärt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erklären | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erklären |
Where the eye mixes erkläre and erklärt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. erkläre (VCCCVCV) and erklärt (VCCCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses erkläre with erklärt
A purely visual mix-up. erkläre ([ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːʁə]) 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 a single letter - e in “erkläre” becomes t in “erklärt”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9773, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erkläre is recorded at frequency rank #9,013, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːʁə]. 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 9773, this pair ranks #1,978,368 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erkläre vs erklärt
Shared letters: eklrä. Private to "erkläre": -. Private to "erklärt": t.
"erkläre" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV · "erklärt" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erkläre" and "erklärt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "erkläre" or "erklärt"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erkläre" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erklärt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,978,368 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erkläre" and "erklärt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erkläre vs erklärtes". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,978,368 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.