ErlösvsErsWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#17,874
“Erlös” frequency rank
#22,708
“Ers” frequency rank
40582
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Erlös Ers
Definition Geld aus dem Verkauf von etwas Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Er

Where the eye mixes Erlös and Ers

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
Erlös
3 ch
Ers

Visual trap between Erlös and Ers

A purely visual mix-up. Erlös ([ɛɐ̯ˈløːs]) and Ers ([eːɐ̯s]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40582, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Erlös is recorded at frequency rank #17,874, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈløːs]. Ers is at rank #22,708, tagged as anoun, pronounced [eːɐ̯s].

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 40582, this pair ranks #1,504,322 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Erlös vs Ers

Shared letters: ers. Private to "Erlös": . Private to "Ers": -.

"Erlös" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC  ·  "Ers" · 3 letters · shape VCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Erlös" and "Ers" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈløːs] versus [eːɐ̯s]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Erlös" vs "Ers" - which ranks higher?
"Erlös" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,874 in our German list, against #22,708 for "Ers". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Erlös" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Ers" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,504,322 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Erlös" and "Ers" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Ers vs Esra". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,504,322 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