ErlangungvsErwägungTell them apart

Which to use

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

#27,277
“Erlangung” frequency rank
#14,797
“Erwägung” frequency rank
42074
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Erlangung Erwägung
Definition die Inbesitznahme von körperlichen Gütern oder geistigen Werten; das Erreichen von Zielen das prüfende Nachdenken über etwas oder verschiedene Möglichkeiten, wobei auch die möglichen Folgen bedacht werden

Where the eye mixes Erlangung and Erwägung

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Erlangung runs 9 letters (VCCVCCVCC) against Erwägung's 8 (VCCVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
Erlangung
8 ch
Erwägung

Why the eye confuses Erlangung with Erwägung

A purely visual mix-up. Erlangung ([ɛɐ̯ˈlaŋʊŋ]) and Erwägung ([ɛɐ̯ˈvɛːɡʊŋ]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42074, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Erlangung is recorded at frequency rank #27,277, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈlaŋʊŋ]. Erwägung is at rank #14,797, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈvɛːɡʊŋ].

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 42074, this pair ranks #1,460,331 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Erlangung vs Erwägung

Shared letters: egnru. Private to "Erlangung": al. Private to "Erwägung": wä.

"Erlangung" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC  ·  "Erwägung" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Erlangung ← elrangung · eralngung · erlagnung · erlanggung · erlangnug · erlangugn · erlangungg · erlangunng

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Erlangung" and "Erwägung" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈlaŋʊŋ] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈvɛːɡʊŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Erlangung" or "Erwägung"?
"Erwägung" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,797 in our German list, against #27,277 for "Erlangung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "Erlangung" and "Erwägung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Erlangung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Erwägung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,460,331 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Erlangung" and "Erwägung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Erbauung vs Erwägung". Nearby pair
  • Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #1,460,331 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list