KlingelvsklingelnConfusable pair

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

Which to use

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

#20,975
“Klingel” frequency rank
#12,519
“klingeln” frequency rank
33494
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Klingel klingeln
Definition Gerät zum Klingeln etwas schrillen lassen, sehr häufig die Klingel an einem Eingang

Where the eye mixes Klingel and klingeln

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Klingel runs 7 letters (CCVCCVC) against klingeln's 8 (CCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
Klingel
8 ch
klingeln

Look-alike desk: Klingel vs klingeln

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Klingel is [ˈklɪŋl̩] while klingeln is [ˈklɪŋl̩n]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Klingel” sits inside “klingeln”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33494, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Klingel is recorded at frequency rank #20,975, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈklɪŋl̩]. klingeln is at rank #12,519, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈklɪŋl̩n].

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 33494, this pair ranks #1,684,769 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Klingel vs klingeln

Shared letters: egikln. Private to "Klingel": -. Private to "klingeln": -.

"Klingel" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC  ·  "klingeln" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Klingel ← kilngel · kklingel · klignel · klinegl · klingell · klinggel · klingle · klinngel
  • klingeln ← kilngeln · kklingeln · kligneln · klinegln · klingelln · klingelnn · klingenl · klinggeln

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Klingel" and "klingeln" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Klingel" is a noun and "klingeln" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "Klingel" vs "klingeln" - which ranks higher?
"klingeln" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,519 in our German list, against #20,975 for "Klingel". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "Klingel" and "klingeln" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Klingel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "klingeln" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,684,769 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Klingel" and "klingeln" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Klingel vs klingst". 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 #1,684,769 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