Which to use
“gelesen” and “geliehen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,224
- “gelesen” frequency rank
- #22,736
- “geliehen” frequency rank
- 23960
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gelesen | geliehen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs lesen | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs leihen |
Where the eye mixes gelesen and geliehen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. gelesen runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against geliehen's 8 (CVCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses gelesen with geliehen
A purely visual mix-up. gelesen ([ɡəˈleːzn̩]) and geliehen ([ɡəˈliːən]) 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 23960, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gelesen is recorded at frequency rank #1,224, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈleːzn̩]. geliehen is at rank #22,736, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈliːən].
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 23960, this pair ranks #1,854,192 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gelesen vs geliehen
Shared letters: egln. Private to "gelesen": s. Private to "geliehen": hi.
"gelesen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "geliehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gelesen" and "geliehen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "gelesen" vs "geliehen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "gelesen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "geliehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,854,192 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gelesen" and "geliehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "geliehen vs gerieben". 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 #1,854,192 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.