Which to use
“erlebt” and “erlitt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,879
- “erlebt” frequency rank
- #9,363
- “erlitt” frequency rank
- 11242
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erlebt | erlitt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erleben | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs erleiden |
Where the eye mixes erlebt and erlitt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. erlebt and erlitt follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between erlebt and erlitt
A purely visual mix-up. erlebt ([ɛɐ̯ˈleːpt]) and erlitt ([ɛɐ̯ˈlɪt]) 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 11242, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erlebt is recorded at frequency rank #1,879, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈleːpt]. erlitt is at rank #9,363, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈlɪt].
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 11242, this pair ranks #1,970,899 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erlebt vs erlitt
Shared letters: elrt. Private to "erlebt": b. Private to "erlitt": i.
"erlebt" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC · "erlitt" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erlebt" and "erlitt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "erlebt" or "erlitt" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erlebt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erlitt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,970,899 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erlebt" and "erlitt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erliegt vs erlitt". 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 #1,970,899 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.