Which to use
“erlauben” is a verb and “erlaubten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,575
- “erlauben” frequency rank
- #16,408
- “erlaubten” frequency rank
- 19983
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erlauben | erlaubten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem die Zustimmung oder die Möglichkeit geben | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erlaubt |
Where the eye mixes erlauben and erlaubten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. erlauben runs 8 letters (VCCVVCVC) against erlaubten's 9 (VCCVVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: erlauben vs erlaubten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erlauben is [ɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯bn̩] while erlaubten is [ɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯ptn̩]. 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 19983, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erlauben is recorded at frequency rank #3,575, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯bn̩]. erlaubten is at rank #16,408, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯ptn̩].
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 19983, this pair ranks #1,902,537 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erlauben vs erlaubten
Shared letters: abelnru. Private to "erlauben": -. Private to "erlaubten": t.
"erlauben" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC · "erlaubten" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erlauben" for "erlaubten" ever safe?
Which is more common, "erlauben" or "erlaubten"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "erlauben" and "erlaubten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "erlauben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erlaubten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,902,537 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erlauben" and "erlaubten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erlauben vs erwarben". 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 #1,902,537 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.