erregenvsErregungWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: erregen is a verb, Erregung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“erregen” is a verb and “Erregung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#17,875
“erregen” frequency rank
#20,236
“Erregung” frequency rank
38111
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature erregen Erregung
Definition jemanden oder sich in Unruhe oder Ärger versetzen; jemanden aktivieren; jemanden (sexuell) stimulieren eine Art seelischer Hochspannung

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set erregen and Erregung apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
erregen
8 ch
Erregung

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erregen is [ɛɐ̯ˈʁeːɡn̩] while Erregung is [ɛɐ̯ˈʁeːɡʊŋ]. 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 38111, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

erregen is recorded at frequency rank #17,875, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʁeːɡn̩]. Erregung is at rank #20,236, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʁeːɡʊŋ].

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 38111, this pair ranks #1,572,492 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of erregen vs Erregung

Shared letters: egnr. Private to "erregen": -. Private to "Erregung": u.

"erregen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "Erregung" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • erregeneregen · erergen · erreegn · erregenn · erreggen · erregne · errgeen · reregen
  • Erregungeregung · erergung · erreggung · erregnug · erregugn · erregungg · erregunng · erreugng

Frequency comparison

erregen#17,875
Erregung#20,236

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "erregen" and "Erregung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "erregen" is a verb and "Erregung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "erregen" or "Erregung"?
"erregen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,875 in our German list, against #20,236 for "Erregung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering erregen vs Erregung

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “erregen”; for a noun, it's “Erregung”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “erregen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list