Which to use
“Kleid” is a noun and “klein” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,977
- “Kleid” frequency rank
- #995
- “klein” frequency rank
- 4972
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Kleid | klein |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | einteiliges Oberbekleidungsstück für weibliche Personen | von geringem Ausmaß |
Where the eye mixes Kleid and klein
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Kleid and klein
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Kleid is [klaɪ̯t] while klein is [klaɪ̯n]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - d in “Kleid” becomes n in “klein”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4972, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Kleid is recorded at frequency rank #3,977, classified as anoun, pronounced [klaɪ̯t]. klein is at rank #995, tagged as anadj, pronounced [klaɪ̯n].
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 4972, this pair ranks #1,996,160 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Kleid vs klein
Shared letters: eikl. Private to "Kleid": d. Private to "klein": n.
"Kleid" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC · "klein" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Kleid" and "klein" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Kleid" or "klein" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Kleid" and "klein" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Kleid" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "klein" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,996,160 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Kleid" and "klein" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "klebe vs Kleid". 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 #1,996,160 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.