expandiertvsexplodiertWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: expandiert is a verb, explodiert is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“expandiert” is a verb and “explodiert” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#43,164
“expandiert” frequency rank
#10,469
“explodiert” frequency rank
53633
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature expandiert explodiert
Definition Partizip Perfekt des Verbs expandieren in einer Explosion auseinandergeflogen, laut zerplatzt

Where the eye mixes expandiert and explodiert

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.

10 ch
expandiert
10 ch
explodiert

Why the eye confuses expandiert with explodiert

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: expandiert is [ɛkspanˈdiːɐ̯t] while explodiert is [ɛksploˈdiːɐ̯t]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53633, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

expandiert is recorded at frequency rank #43,164, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛkspanˈdiːɐ̯t]. explodiert is at rank #10,469, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɛksploˈdiːɐ̯t].

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 53633, this pair ranks #1,050,419 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of expandiert vs explodiert

Shared letters: deiprtx. Private to "expandiert": an. Private to "explodiert": lo.

"expandiert" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVVCC  ·  "explodiert" · 10 letters · shape VCCCVCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • expandiertepxandiert · exapndiert · expadniert · expanddiert · expandeirt · expandierrt · expandiertt · expandietr
  • explodiertepxlodiert · exlpodiert · expldoiert · expllodiert · exploddiert · explodeirt · explodierrt · explodiertt

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "expandiert" for "explodiert" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "expandiert" is a verb and "explodiert" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "expandiert" or "explodiert"?
"explodiert" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,469 in our German list, against #43,164 for "expandiert". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "expandiert" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "explodiert" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,050,419 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "expandiert" and "explodiert" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "expandieren vs expandiert". 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 #1,050,419 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