eröffnenvseröffneteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: eröffnen is a verb, eröffnete is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“eröffnen” is a verb and “eröffnete” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,586
“eröffnen” frequency rank
#6,789
“eröffnete” frequency rank
12375
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature eröffnen eröffnete
Definition etwas öffentlich zugänglich machen, für Publikum aufmachen Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs eröffnet

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set eröffnen and eröffnete apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
eröffnen
9 ch
eröffnete

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: eröffnen is [ɛɐ̯ˈʔœfnən] while eröffnete is [ɛɐ̯ˈʔœfnətə]. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12375, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

eröffnen is recorded at frequency rank #5,586, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʔœfnən]. eröffnete is at rank #6,789, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʔœfnətə].

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 12375, this pair ranks #1,964,543 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of eröffnen vs eröffnete

Shared letters: efnrö. Private to "eröffnen": -. Private to "eröffnete": t.

"eröffnen" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCCVC  ·  "eröffnete" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCCVCV

Frequency comparison

eröffnen#5,586
eröffnete#6,789

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "eröffnen" and "eröffnete" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "eröffnen" is a verb and "eröffnete" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "eröffnen" or "eröffnete"?
"eröffnen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,586 in our German list, against #6,789 for "eröffnete". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering eröffnen vs eröffnete

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “eröffnen”; for an adjective, it's “eröffnete”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “eröffnen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list