Which to use
“erstochen” and “ersuchen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,905
- “erstochen” frequency rank
- #28,179
- “ersuchen” frequency rank
- 49084
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erstochen | ersuchen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erstechen | höflich um etwas bitten |
Where the eye mixes erstochen and ersuchen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. erstochen runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against ersuchen's 8 (VCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erstochen with ersuchen
A purely visual mix-up. erstochen ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtɔxn̩]) and ersuchen ([ɛɐ̯ˈzuːxn̩]) 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 49084, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erstochen is recorded at frequency rank #20,905, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtɔxn̩]. ersuchen is at rank #28,179, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈzuːxn̩].
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 49084, this pair ranks #1,224,651 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of erstochen vs ersuchen
Shared letters: cehnrs. Private to "erstochen": ot. Private to "ersuchen": u.
"erstochen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "ersuchen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erstochen" for "ersuchen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "erstochen" vs "ersuchen" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erstochen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ersuchen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,224,651 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erstochen" and "ersuchen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ersuchen vs Eschen". 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 #1,224,651 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.