Which to use
“erwirbt” and “erwirkt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,898
- “erwirbt” frequency rank
- #36,306
- “erwirkt” frequency rank
- 56204
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erwirbt | erwirkt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs erwerben | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs erwirken |
Where the eye mixes erwirbt and erwirkt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. erwirbt and erwirkt follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between erwirbt and erwirkt
A purely visual mix-up. erwirbt ([ɛɐ̯ˈvɪʁpt]) and erwirkt ([ɛɐ̯ˈvɪʁkt]) 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 a single letter - b in “erwirbt” becomes k in “erwirkt”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56204, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erwirbt is recorded at frequency rank #19,898, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈvɪʁpt]. erwirkt is at rank #36,306, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈvɪʁkt].
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 56204, this pair ranks #949,323 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of erwirbt vs erwirkt
Shared letters: eirtw. Private to "erwirbt": b. Private to "erwirkt": k.
"erwirbt" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCC · "erwirkt" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "erwirbt" and "erwirkt" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "erwirbt" vs "erwirkt" - which ranks higher?
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 "erwirbt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erwirkt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #949,323 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erwirbt" and "erwirkt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erwirkt vs erwürgt". 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 #949,323 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.