Which to use
“erzählte” and “erzählten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,958
- “erzählte” frequency rank
- #16,694
- “erzählten” frequency rank
- 20652
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erzählte | erzählten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erzählt | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erzählt |
Where the eye mixes erzählte and erzählten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. erzählte runs 8 letters (VCCVCCCV) against erzählten's 9 (VCCVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses erzählte with erzählten
A purely visual mix-up. erzählte ([ɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛːltə]) and erzählten ([ɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛːltn̩]) 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 extra letter(s) - “erzählte” sits inside “erzählten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20652, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erzählte is recorded at frequency rank #3,958, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛːltə]. erzählten is at rank #16,694, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈt͡sɛːltn̩].
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 20652, this pair ranks #1,895,295 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of erzählte vs erzählten
Shared letters: ehlrtzä. Private to "erzählte": -. Private to "erzählten": n.
"erzählte" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV · "erzählten" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "erzählte" for "erzählten" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "erzählte" or "erzählten" show up more?
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 "erzählte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erzählten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,895,295 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erzählte" and "erzählten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erwählt vs erzählte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,895,295 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.