KlanvsklärenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Klan is a noun, klären is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Klan” is a noun and “klären” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#30,640
“Klan” frequency rank
#3,900
“klären” frequency rank
34540
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Klan klären
Definition eine Gruppe der schottischen Clangesellschaft mitteilen, wie sich etwas in Wahrheit verhält

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Klan and klären apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
Klan
6 ch
klären

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Klan is [klaːn] while klären is [ˈklɛːʁən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34540, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Klan is recorded at frequency rank #30,640, classified as anoun, pronounced [klaːn]. 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 34540, this pair ranks #1,660,980 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Klan vs klären

Shared letters: kln. Private to "Klan": a. Private to "klären": erä.

"Klan" · 4 letters · shape CCVC  ·  "klären" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Klankaln · kklan · klann · kllan · klna · lkan

Frequency comparison

Klan#30,640
klären#3,900

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Klan" and "klären" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Klan" is a noun and "klären" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Klan" or "klären"?
"klären" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,900 in our German list, against #30,640 for "Klan". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Klan vs klären

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Klan”; for a verb, it's “klären”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Klan” 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