Which to use
“erlischt” and “erwische” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,533
- “erlischt” frequency rank
- #44,578
- “erwische” frequency rank
- 70111
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erlischt | erwische |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erlöschen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erwischen |
Where the eye mixes erlischt and erwische
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. erlischt (VCCVCCCC) and erwische (VCCVCCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses erlischt with erwische
A purely visual mix-up. erlischt ([ɛɐ̯ˈlɪʃt]) and erwische ([ɛɐ̯ˈvɪʃə]) 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 70111, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erlischt is recorded at frequency rank #25,533, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈlɪʃt]. erwische is at rank #44,578, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈvɪʃə].
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 70111, this pair ranks #456,157 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of erlischt vs erwische
Shared letters: cehirs. Private to "erlischt": lt. Private to "erwische": w.
"erlischt" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCC · "erwische" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erlischt" and "erwische" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "erlischt" vs "erwische" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "erlischt" and "erwische" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "erlischt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erwische" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #456,157 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erlischt" and "erwische" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "epische vs erwische". 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 #456,157 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.