ErtragvsertragenConfusable pair

Quick tell: Ertrag is a noun, ertragen is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Ertrag” is a noun and “ertragen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#12,701
“Ertrag” frequency rank
#4,878
“ertragen” frequency rank
17579
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Ertrag ertragen
Definition das positive Ergebnis einer Anstrengung eine unangenehme oder schwierige Situation hinnehmen und deswegen nicht die Beherrschung verlieren oder zusammenbrechen

Where the eye mixes Ertrag and ertragen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Ertrag runs 6 letters (VCCCVC) against ertragen's 8 (VCCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Ertrag
8 ch
ertragen

Look-alike desk: Ertrag vs ertragen

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Ertrag is [ɛɐ̯ˈtʁaːk] while ertragen is [ɛɐ̯ˈtʁaːɡn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “Ertrag” sits inside “ertragen”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17579, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Ertrag is recorded at frequency rank #12,701, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈtʁaːk]. ertragen is at rank #4,878, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈtʁaːɡn̩].

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 17579, this pair ranks #1,926,119 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Ertrag vs ertragen

Shared letters: aegrt. Private to "Ertrag": -. Private to "ertragen": n.

"Ertrag" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC  ·  "ertragen" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Ertrag ← errtag · errtrag · ertarg · ertragg · ertrga · ertrrag · erttrag · etrrag
  • ertragen ← errtagen · errtragen · ertargen · ertraegn · ertragenn · ertraggen · ertragne · ertrgaen

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Ertrag" and "ertragen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Ertrag" is a noun and "ertragen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "Ertrag" or "ertragen" show up more?
"ertragen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,878 in our German list, against #12,701 for "Ertrag". 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 "Ertrag" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ertragen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,926,119 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Ertrag" and "ertragen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ertragen vs ertränken". 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 #1,926,119 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