Which to use
“erweitern” and “erwidern” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,294
- “erweitern” frequency rank
- #31,032
- “erwidern” frequency rank
- 37326
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erweitern | erwidern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | vergrößern, weiten | auf etwas antworten |
Where the eye mixes erweitern and erwidern
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. erweitern runs 9 letters (VCCVVCVCC) against erwidern's 8 (VCCVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erweitern with erwidern
A purely visual mix-up. erweitern ([ɛɐ̯ˈvaɪ̯tɐn]) and erwidern ([ɛɐ̯ˈviːdɐn]) 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 37326, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erweitern is recorded at frequency rank #6,294, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈvaɪ̯tɐn]. erwidern is at rank #31,032, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈviːdɐn].
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 37326, this pair ranks #1,593,110 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erweitern vs erwidern
Shared letters: einrw. Private to "erweitern": t. Private to "erwidern": d.
"erweitern" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVCVCC · "erwidern" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erweitern" for "erwidern" ever safe?
Which is more common, "erweitern" or "erwidern"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "erweitern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erwidern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,593,110 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erweitern" and "erwidern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erwidern vs erwidert". 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 #1,593,110 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.