Which to use
“erschrecken” and “erstrecken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,347
- “erschrecken” frequency rank
- #19,561
- “erstrecken” frequency rank
- 34908
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erschrecken | erstrecken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemandem einen Schrecken einflößen | eine bestimmte räumliche Ausdehnung haben |
Where the eye mixes erschrecken and erstrecken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. erschrecken runs 11 letters (VCCCCCVCCVC) against erstrecken's 10 (VCCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erschrecken with erstrecken
A purely visual mix-up. erschrecken ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃʁɛkn̩]) and erstrecken ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtʁɛkn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34908, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erschrecken is recorded at frequency rank #15,347, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʁɛkn̩]. erstrecken is at rank #19,561, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtʁɛkn̩].
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 34908, this pair ranks #1,652,509 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erschrecken vs erstrecken
Shared letters: ceknrs. Private to "erschrecken": h. Private to "erstrecken": t.
"erschrecken" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCCVCCVC · "erstrecken" · 10 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- erschrecken ← ercshrecken · errschrecken · erscchrecken · erschercken · erschhrecken · erschrceken · erschreccken · erschrecekn
- erstrecken ← errstrecken · ersrtecken · ersstrecken · erstercken · erstrceken · erstreccken · erstrecekn · erstreckenn
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erschrecken" and "erstrecken" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "erschrecken" or "erstrecken" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "erschrecken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erstrecken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,652,509 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erschrecken" and "erstrecken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erschrecken vs erschreckende". 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 #1,652,509 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.