Which to use
“erklären” is a verb and “erklärten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #925
- “erklären” frequency rank
- #10,269
- “erklärten” frequency rank
- 11194
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erklären | erklärten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem etwas lehrend beschreiben, erläutern, verlautbaren; auf eine Ursache zurückführen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erklärt |
Where the eye mixes erklären and erklärten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses erklären with erklärten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erklären is [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːʁən] while erklärten is [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯tn̩]. 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 11194, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erklären is recorded at frequency rank #925, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːʁən]. erklärten is at rank #10,269, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈklɛːɐ̯tn̩].
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 11194, this pair ranks #1,971,174 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erklären vs erklärten
Shared letters: eklnrä. Private to "erklären": -. Private to "erklärten": t.
"erklären" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC · "erklärten" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "erklären" and "erklärten" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "erklären" vs "erklärten" - 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 "erklären" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erklärten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,971,174 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erklären" and "erklärten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erklärten vs erklärtes". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,971,174 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.