Which to use
“ersetze” is a verb and “ersetzten” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,088
- “ersetze” frequency rank
- #40,515
- “ersetzten” frequency rank
- 78603
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ersetze | ersetzten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs ersetzen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs ersetzt |
Where the eye mixes ersetze and ersetzten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. ersetze runs 7 letters (VCCVCCV) against ersetzten's 9 (VCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between ersetze and ersetzten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ersetze is [ɛɐ̯ˈzɛt͡sə] while ersetzten is [ɛɐ̯ˈzɛt͡stn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 78603, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ersetze is recorded at frequency rank #38,088, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈzɛt͡sə]. ersetzten is at rank #40,515, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈzɛt͡stn̩].
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 78603, this pair ranks #234,597 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ersetze vs ersetzten
Shared letters: erstz. Private to "ersetze": -. Private to "ersetzten": n.
"ersetze" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCV · "ersetzten" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ersetze" for "ersetzten" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ersetze" or "ersetzten"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ersetze" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ersetzten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #234,597 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ersetze" and "ersetzten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ersehnten vs ersetzten". 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 #234,597 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.