Which to use
“erlaubten” and “erlebten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,408
- “erlaubten” frequency rank
- #14,556
- “erlebten” frequency rank
- 30964
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erlaubten | erlebten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erlaubt | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erlebt |
Where the eye mixes erlaubten and erlebten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. erlaubten runs 9 letters (VCCVVCCVC) against erlebten's 8 (VCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erlaubten with erlebten
A purely visual mix-up. erlaubten ([ɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯ptn̩]) and erlebten ([ɛɐ̯ˈleːptn̩]) 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 30964, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erlaubten is recorded at frequency rank #16,408, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈlaʊ̯ptn̩]. erlebten is at rank #14,556, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈleːptn̩].
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 30964, this pair ranks #1,737,471 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erlaubten vs erlebten
Shared letters: belnrt. Private to "erlaubten": au. Private to "erlebten": -.
"erlaubten" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVCCVC · "erlebten" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erlaubten" and "erlebten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "erlaubten" or "erlebten"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erlaubten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erlebten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,737,471 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erlaubten" and "erlebten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erlebten vs erregten". 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 #1,737,471 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.