Which to use
“erschüttern” and “erschütternd” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,563
- “erschüttern” frequency rank
- #39,918
- “erschütternd” frequency rank
- 69481
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erschüttern | erschütternd |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in schwingende Bewegung bringen | Partizip Präsens des Verbs erschüttern |
Where the eye mixes erschüttern and erschütternd
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. erschüttern runs 11 letters (VCCCCVCCVCC) against erschütternd's 12 (VCCCCVCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erschüttern with erschütternd
A purely visual mix-up. erschüttern ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐn]) and erschütternd ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐnt]) 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 extra letter(s) - “erschüttern” sits inside “erschütternd”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69481, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erschüttern is recorded at frequency rank #29,563, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐn]. erschütternd is at rank #39,918, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐnt].
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 69481, this pair ranks #475,260 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of erschüttern vs erschütternd
Shared letters: cehnrstü. Private to "erschüttern": -. Private to "erschütternd": d.
"erschüttern" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCC · "erschütternd" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erschüttern" for "erschütternd" ever safe?
Which is more common, "erschüttern" or "erschütternd"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "erschüttern" and "erschütternd" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "erschüttern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erschütternd" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #475,260 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erschüttern" and "erschütternd" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erschütternd vs Erschütterung". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #475,260 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.