erschrecken
German, verb/ɛʁˈʃʁɛkən/
erschrecken is spelled E-R-S-C-H-R-E-C-K-E-N (11 letters) and appears 3.7 times per million words in written German, the 15,332nd most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Erschrecken is a German verb meaning “to be frightened; to be startled” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “jemandem einen Schrecken einflößen”.
What does erschrecken mean in English?
verb
- 1
to be frightened; to be startled
Ich bin erschrocken.
- 2
colloquialto be frightened; to be startled
Ich habe mich erschrocken.
- 3
datedto frighten; to scare (someone)
verb
- 1
to frighten; to scare (someone)
Du hast mich erschreckt.
- 2
to be frightened; to be startled
Ich habe mich erschreckt.
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. jemandem einen Schrecken einflößen
verb: 1. von einem Schrecken ergriffen werden
verb: 1. von einem Schrecken ergriffen werden
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 erschrecken
- erschrickt present singular third-person
- erschrak past
- erschrocken participle past
- erschräke past subjunctive
- sein auxiliary
- haben auxiliary colloquial
- 4 strong
- sein or haben auxiliary
- erschreckend participle present
- erschrecke first-person indicative present
- erschrickst indicative present second-person
- erschreckt indicative plural present
- erschreckest second-person singular subjunctive
- erschrecket plural second-person subjunctive
- erschraken first-person indicative plural
- erschräken first-person formal plural
- erschrakst indicative preterite second-person
- erschrakt indicative plural preterite
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce erschrecken?
- /ɛʁˈʃʁɛkən/
- [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʁɛkən]
- [ɛɐ̯ˈʃʁɛkŋ̍]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to erschrecken
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is erschrecken in German?
erschrecken appears 3.7 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).