klagtenvsklärenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#45,387
“klagten” frequency rank
#3,900
“klären” frequency rank
49287
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature klagten klären
Definition 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs klagen mitteilen, wie sich etwas in Wahrheit verhält

Where the eye mixes klagten and klären

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. klagten runs 7 letters (CCVCCVC) against klären's 6 (CCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
klagten
6 ch
klären

Why the eye confuses klagten with klären

A purely visual mix-up. klagten ([ˈklaːktn̩]) and klären ([ˈklɛːʁən]) 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 49287, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

klagten is recorded at frequency rank #45,387, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈklaːktn̩]. klären is at rank #3,900, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈklɛːʁən].

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 49287, this pair ranks #1,217,134 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of klagten vs klären

Shared letters: ekln. Private to "klagten": agt. Private to "klären": rä.

"klagten" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC  ·  "klären" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • klagten ← kalgten · kklagten · klagetn · klaggten · klagtenn · klagtne · klagtten · klatgen

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "klagten" and "klären" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈklaːktn̩] versus [ˈklɛːʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "klagten" or "klären"?
"klären" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,900 in our German list, against #45,387 for "klagten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "klagten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "klären" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,217,134 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "klagten" and "klären" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "klagten vs klärte". 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 #1,217,134 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