Which to use
“erschütternd” is a verb and “erschütterte” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #39,918
- “erschütternd” frequency rank
- #41,787
- “erschütterte” frequency rank
- 81705
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erschütternd | erschütterte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Präsens des Verbs erschüttern | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs erschüttert |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set erschütternd and erschütterte apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: erschütternd is [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐnt] while erschütterte is [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐtə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 81705, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erschütternd is recorded at frequency rank #39,918, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐnt]. erschütterte is at rank #41,787, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʏtɐtə].
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 81705, this pair ranks #170,705 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of erschütternd vs erschütterte
Shared letters: cehrstü. Private to "erschütternd": dn. Private to "erschütterte": -.
"erschütternd" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCCC · "erschütterte" · 12 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCCV
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "erschütternd" and "erschütterte" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "erschütternd" or "erschütterte"?
Remembering erschütternd vs erschütterte
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “erschütternd”; for an adjective, it's “erschütterte”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “erschütternd” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable