Which to use
“lagen” is a verb and “laue” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,664
- “lagen” frequency rank
- #38,872
- “laue” frequency rank
- 41536
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lagen | laue |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs liegen | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs lau |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lagen and laue apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lagen is [ˈlaːɡn̩] while laue is [ˈlaʊ̯ə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41536, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lagen is recorded at frequency rank #2,664, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaːɡn̩]. laue is at rank #38,872, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈlaʊ̯ə].
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 41536, this pair ranks #1,476,480 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lagen vs laue
Shared letters: ael. Private to "lagen": gn. Private to "laue": u.
"lagen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "laue" · 4 letters · shape CVVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lagen" and "laue" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "lagen" or "laue"?
Remembering lagen vs laue
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “lagen”; for an adjective, it's “laue”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lagen” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable