Which to use
“kleben” and “kleiden” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,312
- “kleben” frequency rank
- #23,199
- “kleiden” frequency rank
- 33511
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kleben | kleiden |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zwei Gegenstände mit einem Hilfsstoff (Klebstoff) zum dauernden Aneinanderhaften bringen | mit Kleidung versehen |
Where the eye mixes kleben and kleiden
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. kleben runs 6 letters (CCVCVC) against kleiden's 7 (CCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses kleben with kleiden
A purely visual mix-up. kleben ([ˈkleːbn̩]) and kleiden ([ˈklaɪ̯dn̩]) 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 33511, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kleben is recorded at frequency rank #10,312, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkleːbn̩]. kleiden is at rank #23,199, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈklaɪ̯dn̩].
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 33511, this pair ranks #1,684,384 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of kleben vs kleiden
Shared letters: ekln. Private to "kleben": b. Private to "kleiden": di.
"kleben" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "kleiden" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "kleben" for "kleiden" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "kleben" or "kleiden" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "kleben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kleiden" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,684,384 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "kleben" and "kleiden" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "kleiden vs kneifen". 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 #1,684,384 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.