Which to use
“erpressen” is a verb and “Erpressung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,591
- “erpressen” frequency rank
- #15,346
- “Erpressung” frequency rank
- 36937
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erpressen | Erpressung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemanden durch Drohungen oder Gewalt zu etwas zwingen | kriminelles, illegales Erzwingen eines Verhaltens oder einer Leistung durch Androhung negativer Konsequenzen bei Nichterfüllung |
Where the eye mixes erpressen and Erpressung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. erpressen runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against Erpressung's 10 (VCCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erpressen with Erpressung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erpressen is [ɛɐ̯ˈpʁɛsn̩] while Erpressung is [ɛɐ̯ˈpʁɛsʊŋ]. 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 36937, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erpressen is recorded at frequency rank #21,591, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈpʁɛsn̩]. Erpressung is at rank #15,346, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈpʁɛsʊŋ].
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 36937, this pair ranks #1,602,860 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erpressen vs Erpressung
Shared letters: enprs. Private to "erpressen": -. Private to "Erpressung": gu.
"erpressen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "Erpressung" · 10 letters · shape VCCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- erpressen ← eprressen · erperssen · erppressen · erpresen · erpresesn · erpressenn · erpressne · erpreßen
- Erpressung ← eprressung · erperssung · erppressung · erpressnug · erpressugn · erpressungg · erpressunng · erpresung
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erpressen" and "Erpressung" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "erpressen" or "Erpressung" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "erpressen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Erpressung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,602,860 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erpressen" and "Erpressung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erpressen vs Erpresser". 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 #1,602,860 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.