erfahren
German, verb/ʔɛɐ̯ˈfaːɐ̯n/
erfahren is spelled E-R-F-A-H-R-E-N (8 letters) and appears 79 times per million words in written German, the 1,082nd most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Erfahren is a German verb meaning “to find out, learn, to come to know” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is also a past participle of erfahren. The German Wiktionary defines it as “durch eigenes Erleben kennen lernen”.
What does erfahren mean in English?
verb
- 1
to find out, learn, to come to know
Ich habe aus der Zeitung von Helgas Tod erfahren.
- 2
to experience
Er hat im Leben viel Gutes und Böses erfahren.
adjective
- 1
experienced
verb
- 1
past participle of erfahren
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. durch eigenes Erleben kennen lernen 2. zur Kenntnis bekommen, von etwas Kenntnis erhalten, etwas mitgeteilt bekommen
adjective: 1. reich an den in der Praxis erworbenen Kenntnissen
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of erfahren
- erfährt present singular third-person
- erfuhr past
- erführe past subjunctive
- haben auxiliary
- 6 strong
- erfahrend participle present
- erfahre first-person indicative present
- erfährst indicative present second-person
- erfahrt indicative plural present
- erfahrest second-person singular subjunctive
- erfahret plural second-person subjunctive
- erfuhren first-person indicative plural
- erführen first-person formal plural
- erfuhrst indicative preterite second-person
- erfuhrt indicative plural preterite
- erführest formal rare second-person
- erführst formal rare second-person
- erführet formal plural rare
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce erfahren?
- /ʔɛɐ̯ˈfaːɐ̯n/
- /ʔɛɐ̯ˈfaːʁən/
- [ɛɐ̯ˈfaːʁən]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to erfahren
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is erfahren in German?
erfahren appears 79 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).