Which to use
“Klage” is a noun and “klebe” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,898
- “Klage” frequency rank
- #41,281
- “klebe” frequency rank
- 45179
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Klage | klebe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sprachlich gefasste Äußerung unlustvoller Gefühle von Schmerz, Leid oder Trauer, etwa über den Tod eines Menschen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kleben |
Where the eye mixes Klage and klebe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Klage and klebe follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses Klage with klebe
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Klage is [ˈklaːɡə] while klebe is [ˈkleːbə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45179, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Klage is recorded at frequency rank #3,898, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈklaːɡə]. klebe is at rank #41,281, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkleːbə].
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 45179, this pair ranks #1,361,820 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Klage vs klebe
Shared letters: ekl. Private to "Klage": ag. Private to "klebe": b.
"Klage" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "klebe" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Klage" for "klebe" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Klage" or "klebe" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "Klage" and "klebe" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Klage" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "klebe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,361,820 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Klage" and "klebe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "klebe vs Krebse". 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 #1,361,820 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.