erster
[ˈeːɐ̯stɐ]
The verdict
“erster” is in the everyday core of German, ranked #761 in German word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #761
- frequency rank, German
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erste
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | erster |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | [ˈeːɐ̯stɐ] |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #761 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “erster” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for erster is 6 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈeːɐ̯stɐ]. Corpus data places it at rank #761 in overall German word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for erster, with forms such as "errster", "ersetr", and "ersster". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Este", "Ester", "Euter", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is erster, spelled E-R-S-T-E-R.
Definition
- 1Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erste
- 2Genitiv Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erste
- 3Dativ Singular Femininum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erste
- 4Genitiv Plural alle Genera der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erste
- 5Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der gemischten Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs erste
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: errster,ersetr,ersster,ersterr,erstre,erstter,ertser,esrter,rester
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of erster - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "erster"?
What does "erster" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "erster"?
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What language does "erster" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “erster”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is E-R-S-T-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈeːɐ̯stɐ] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Este” - see the side-by-side comparison. erster vs Este
- Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.