herrichtenvsherrschtenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“herrichten” and “herrschten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#44,680
“herrichten” frequency rank
#28,243
“herrschten” frequency rank
72923
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature herrichten herrschten
Definition in einen ansehnlichen oder zumindest verwendbaren Zustand versetzen 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs herrschen

Where the eye mixes herrichten and herrschten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. herrichten (CVCCVCCCVC) and herrschten (CVCCCCCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

10 ch
herrichten
10 ch
herrschten

Why the eye confuses herrichten with herrschten

A purely visual mix-up. herrichten ([ˈheːɐ̯ˌʁɪçtn̩]) and herrschten ([ˈhɛʁʃtn̩]) 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 - i in “herrichten” becomes s in “herrschten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72923, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

herrichten is recorded at frequency rank #44,680, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈheːɐ̯ˌʁɪçtn̩]. herrschten is at rank #28,243, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈhɛʁʃtn̩].

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 72923, this pair ranks #374,704 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of herrichten vs herrschten

Shared letters: cehnrt. Private to "herrichten": i. Private to "herrschten": s.

"herrichten" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCCVC  ·  "herrschten" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • herrichten ← ehrrichten · herichten · herirchten · herrcihten · herricchten · herrichetn · herrichhten · herrichtenn
  • herrschten ← ehrrschten · herrcshten · herrscchten · herrschetn · herrschhten · herrschtenn · herrschtne · herrschtten

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "herrichten" and "herrschten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈheːɐ̯ˌʁɪçtn̩] versus [ˈhɛʁʃtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "herrichten" or "herrschten"?
"herrschten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #28,243 in our German list, against #44,680 for "herrichten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "herrichten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "herrschten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #374,704 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "herrichten" and "herrschten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "herrichten vs hinrichten". 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 #374,704 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