labernvslästernConfusable pair

Which to use

“labern” and “lästern” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#21,674
“labern” frequency rank
#31,671
“lästern” frequency rank
53345
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature labern lästern
Definition ohne Substanz und/oder unnötig lange, gewunden und umständlich, wortreich reden oder monologisieren durch verächtliches Gerede beleidigen (insbesondere Gott, etwas Heiliges)

Where the eye mixes labern and lästern

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
labern
7 ch
lästern

Look-alike desk: labern vs lästern

A purely visual mix-up. labern ([ˈlaːbɐn]) and lästern ([ˈlɛstɐn]) 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 53345, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

labern is recorded at frequency rank #21,674, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaːbɐn]. lästern is at rank #31,671, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛstɐn].

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 53345, this pair ranks #1,061,669 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of labern vs lästern

Shared letters: elnr. Private to "labern": ab. Private to "lästern": stä.

"labern" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC  ·  "lästern" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • labernlabbern · labenr · labernn · laberrn · labren · laebrn · lbaern · llabern

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "labern" for "lästern" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlaːbɐn] versus [ˈlɛstɐn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "labern" or "lästern"?
"labern" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,674 in our German list, against #31,671 for "lästern". 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 "labern" and "lästern" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "labern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lästern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,061,669 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "labern" and "lästern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Lasern vs lästern". 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 #1,061,669 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