Which to use
“ernähren” is a verb and “Ernährung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,910
- “ernähren” frequency rank
- #3,244
- “Ernährung” frequency rank
- 11154
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ernähren | Ernährung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | regelmäßig für Nahrung sorgen | die Zufuhr von Nahrung |
Where the eye mixes ernähren and Ernährung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. ernähren runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against Ernährung's 9 (VCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ernähren with Ernährung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ernähren is [ɛɐ̯ˈnɛːʁən] while Ernährung is [ɛɐ̯ˈnɛːʁʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11154, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ernähren is recorded at frequency rank #7,910, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈnɛːʁən]. Ernährung is at rank #3,244, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈnɛːʁʊŋ].
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 11154, this pair ranks #1,971,399 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ernähren vs Ernährung
Shared letters: ehnrä. Private to "ernähren": -. Private to "Ernährung": gu.
"ernähren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "Ernährung" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ernähren" and "Ernährung" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "ernähren" vs "Ernährung" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "ernähren" and "Ernährung" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ernähren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Ernährung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,971,399 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ernähren" and "Ernährung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ernähre vs ernähren". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,971,399 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.