bleibenvsbleibtWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#376
“bleiben” frequency rank
#350
“bleibt” frequency rank
726
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bleiben bleibt
Definition einen Ort beibehalten 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bleiben

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bleiben and bleibt apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
bleiben
6 ch
bleibt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. bleiben ([ˈblaɪ̯bn̩]) and bleibt ([blaɪ̯pt]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 726, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bleiben is recorded at frequency rank #376, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈblaɪ̯bn̩]. bleibt is at rank #350, tagged as averb, pronounced [blaɪ̯pt].

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 726, this pair ranks #2,005,443 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of bleiben vs bleibt

Shared letters: beil. Private to "bleiben": n. Private to "bleibt": t.

"bleiben" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC  ·  "bleibt" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bleibenbbleiben · beliben · blebien · bleibben · bleibenn · bleibne · bleiebn · blleiben
  • bleibtbbleibt · belibt · blebit · bleibbt · bleibtt · bleitb · bliebt · blleibt

Frequency comparison

bleiben#376
bleibt#350

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "bleiben" and "bleibt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈblaɪ̯bn̩] versus [blaɪ̯pt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "bleiben" or "bleibt"?
"bleibt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #350 in our German list, against #376 for "bleiben". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering bleiben vs bleibt

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bleiben” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list