ertönenvsertöntWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“ertönen” and “ertönt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#40,516
“ertönen” frequency rank
#23,507
“ertönt” frequency rank
64023
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ertönen ertönt
Definition als Ton, Klang wahrnehmbar werden 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs ertönen

Where the eye mixes ertönen and ertönt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
ertönen
6 ch
ertönt

Why the eye confuses ertönen with ertönt

A purely visual mix-up. ertönen ([ɛɐ̯ˈtøːnən]) and ertönt ([ɛɐ̯ˈtøːnt]) 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 64023, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ertönen is recorded at frequency rank #40,516, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈtøːnən]. ertönt is at rank #23,507, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈtøːnt].

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 64023, this pair ranks #656,097 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ertönen vs ertönt

Shared letters: enrtö. Private to "ertönen": -. Private to "ertönt": -.

"ertönen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "ertönt" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ertönen" and "ertönt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ɛɐ̯ˈtøːnən] versus [ɛɐ̯ˈtøːnt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "ertönen" or "ertönt"?
"ertönt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,507 in our German list, against #40,516 for "ertönen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ertönen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ertönt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #656,097 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ertönen" and "ertönt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ertönen vs ertönte". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #656,097 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list