Which to use
“ernannte” and “erwähnte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,226
- “ernannte” frequency rank
- #6,788
- “erwähnte” frequency rank
- 25014
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ernannte | erwähnte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs ernannt | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erwähnt |
Where the eye mixes ernannte and erwähnte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. ernannte and erwähnte follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses ernannte with erwähnte
A purely visual mix-up. ernannte ([ɛɐ̯ˈnantə]) and erwähnte ([ɛɐ̯ˈvɛːntə]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25014, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ernannte is recorded at frequency rank #18,226, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈnantə]. erwähnte is at rank #6,788, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈvɛːntə].
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 25014, this pair ranks #1,839,367 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ernannte vs erwähnte
Shared letters: enrt. Private to "ernannte": a. Private to "erwähnte": hwä.
"ernannte" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV · "erwähnte" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- ernannte ← enrannte · erannnte · ernannet · ernanntte · ernante · ernantne · ernnannte · ernnante
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ernannte" for "erwähnte" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ernannte" or "erwähnte"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ernannte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erwähnte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,839,367 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ernannte" and "erwähnte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erwähnst vs erwähnte". 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 #1,839,367 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.