klarvskläreWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: klar is a adjective, kläre is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“klar” is an adjective and “kläre” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#257
“klar” frequency rank
#44,735
“kläre” frequency rank
44992
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature klar kläre
Definition frei von Unreinheiten oder generell Störendem 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs klären

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
klar
5 ch
kläre

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: klar is [klaːɐ̯] while kläre is [ˈklɛːʁə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44992, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

klar is recorded at frequency rank #257, classified as anadj, pronounced [klaːɐ̯]. kläre is at rank #44,735, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈklɛːʁə].

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 44992, this pair ranks #1,368,022 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of klar vs kläre

Shared letters: klr. Private to "klar": a. Private to "kläre": .

"klar" · 4 letters · shape CCVC  ·  "kläre" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • klarkalr · kklar · klarr · kllar · klra · lkar

Frequency comparison

klar#257
kläre#44,735

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "klar" and "kläre" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "klar" is an adjective and "kläre" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "klar" or "kläre"?
"klar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #257 in our German list, against #44,735 for "kläre". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering klar vs kläre

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “klar”; for a verb, it's “kläre”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “klar” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list