Which to use
“ermöglicht” is a verb and “ermöglichten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,646
- “ermöglicht” frequency rank
- #24,700
- “ermöglichten” frequency rank
- 27346
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ermöglicht | ermöglichten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs ermöglichen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs ermöglicht |
Where the eye mixes ermöglicht and ermöglichten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. ermöglicht runs 10 letters (VCCVCCVCCC) against ermöglichten's 12 (VCCVCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ermöglicht with ermöglichten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ermöglicht is [ɛɐ̯ˈmøːklɪçt] while ermöglichten is [ɛɐ̯ˈmøːklɪçtn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “ermöglicht” sits inside “ermöglichten”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27346, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ermöglicht is recorded at frequency rank #2,646, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈmøːklɪçt]. ermöglichten is at rank #24,700, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈmøːklɪçtn̩].
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 27346, this pair ranks #1,803,256 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ermöglicht vs ermöglichten
Shared letters: ceghilmrtö. Private to "ermöglicht": -. Private to "ermöglichten": n.
"ermöglicht" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCC · "ermöglichten" · 12 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ermöglicht" for "ermöglichten" ever safe?
Frequency check: "ermöglicht" vs "ermöglichten" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ermöglicht" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ermöglichten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,803,256 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ermöglicht" and "ermöglichten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ermöglichte vs ermöglichten". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,803,256 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.