Which to use
“blieben” and “blinken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,757
- “blieben” frequency rank
- #28,107
- “blinken” frequency rank
- 30864
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | blieben | blinken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs bleiben | rhythmisch kurze Lichtsignale aussenden |
Where the eye mixes blieben and blinken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. blieben (CCVVCVC) and blinken (CCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses blieben with blinken
A purely visual mix-up. blieben ([ˈbliːbn̩]) and blinken ([ˈblɪŋkn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30864, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
blieben is recorded at frequency rank #2,757, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbliːbn̩]. blinken is at rank #28,107, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈblɪŋkn̩].
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 30864, this pair ranks #1,739,579 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of blieben vs blinken
Shared letters: beiln. Private to "blieben": -. Private to "blinken": k.
"blieben" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC · "blinken" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "blieben" and "blinken" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "blieben" vs "blinken" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "blieben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "blinken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,739,579 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "blieben" and "blinken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "blindes vs blinken". 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 #1,739,579 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.