erlebenvserlebstWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#1,878
“erleben” frequency rank
#37,499
“erlebst” frequency rank
39377
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erleben erlebst
Definition eine Erfahrung machen, bei etwas dabei sein 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erleben

Where the eye mixes erleben and erlebst

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. erleben (VCCVCVC) and erlebst (VCCVCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
erleben
7 ch
erlebst

Look-alike desk: erleben vs erlebst

A purely visual mix-up. erleben ([ɛɐ̯ˈleːbn̩]) and erlebst ([ɛɐ̯ˈleːpst]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39377, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erleben is recorded at frequency rank #1,878, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈleːbn̩]. erlebst is at rank #37,499, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈleːpst].

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 39377, this pair ranks #1,538,485 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of erleben vs erlebst

Shared letters: belr. Private to "erleben": n. Private to "erlebst": st.

"erleben" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "erlebst" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erleben ← elreben · erelben · erlbeen · erlebben · erlebenn · erlebne · erleebn · erlleben
  • erlebst ← elrebst · erelbst · erlbest · erlebbst · erlebsst · erlebstt · erlebts · erlesbt

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erleben" and "erlebst" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈleːbn̩] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈleːpst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "erleben" or "erlebst"?
"erleben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,878 in our German list, against #37,499 for "erlebst". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "erleben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "erlebst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,538,485 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "erleben" and "erlebst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erlässt vs erlebst". 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 #1,538,485 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