anlockenvsanzulockenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#32,904
“anlocken” frequency rank
#39,789
“anzulocken” frequency rank
72693
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature anlocken anzulocken
Definition Interesse erwecken erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs anlocken

Where the eye mixes anlocken and anzulocken

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. anlocken runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against anzulocken's 10 (VCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
anlocken
10 ch
anzulocken

Why the eye confuses anlocken with anzulocken

A purely visual mix-up. anlocken ([ˈanˌlɔkn̩]) and anzulocken ([ˈant͡suˌlɔkn̩]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72693, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

anlocken is recorded at frequency rank #32,904, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌlɔkn̩]. anzulocken is at rank #39,789, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈant͡suˌlɔkn̩].

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 72693, this pair ranks #381,104 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of anlocken vs anzulocken

Shared letters: aceklno. Private to "anlocken": -. Private to "anzulocken": uz.

"anlocken" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "anzulocken" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • anlocken ← alnocken · anlcoken · anllocken · anloccken · anlocekn · anlockenn · anlockken · anlockne
  • anzulocken ← annzulocken · anuzlocken · anzluocken · anzulcoken · anzullocken · anzuloccken · anzulocekn · anzulockenn

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "anlocken" and "anzulocken" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈanˌlɔkn̩] versus [ˈant͡suˌlɔkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "anlocken" or "anzulocken"?
"anlocken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #32,904 in our German list, against #39,789 for "anzulocken". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "anlocken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "anzulocken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #381,104 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "anlocken" and "anzulocken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anzugucken vs anzulocken". 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 #381,104 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