LabvslasWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#18,610
“Lab” frequency rank
#3,265
“las” frequency rank
21875
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Lab las
Definition Enzymgemisch, das aus Kälbermägen gewonnen wird und zur Käseherstellung genutzt wird 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lesen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Lab and las apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
Lab
3 ch
las

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Lab and las form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by a single letter - b in “Lab” becomes s in “las” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21875, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Lab is recorded at frequency rank #18,610, classified as anoun, pronounced [laːp]. las is at rank #3,265, tagged as averb, pronounced [laːs].

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 21875, this pair ranks #1,881,112 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

Lab#18,610
las#3,265

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Lab" and "las" be used interchangeably?
No, "Lab" and "las" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering Lab vs las

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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